J-J’s Cafe

the French toast was soggy and uncooked. gross. service was unsatisfactory. we waited for 15 minutes to get the check.

Excellent eating establishment, for the type of eatery that it is! A classic cozy diner in the finest sense of the word with a long history at its urban neighborhood location. Very loyal patronage. Not fast food, but rather food served fast. Not fine dining, but instead dining that is in its own charming way quite fine. A breakfast-​and-​lunch only place, with good freshly prepared food and drink served in ample portions at very attractive prices. No, the former 99 cent breakfasts are long gone, but customers get more than they pay for. The owner/​cook/​chef is welcoming and nearly always entertaining. It’s a fun, filling place to stop by!

After getting stiffed on brunch plans, I decided to eat my heart out at JJs diner.
JJs is everything that you want in a diner. It’s small, clean, and has great food at a good price with very friendly service.
The man at the flatiron grill (possibly the owner, JJ) cooks using water and steam without oil. The food is so tasty, you don’t even miss the fattening buttery taste that I’ve grown accustomed to at most diners. I recommend getting everything extra spicy. It kicks the flavor up a notch and adds to the meal overall, although if you are trying to drink «hot beer» (coffee) with your meal, the spice can make it difficult.
I got a bacon egg and cheese breakfast sandwich, extra spicy. It came out quickly and smoking hot. There were peppers and onions in the eggs, which were not listed on the menu, but were enjoyable. After eating the sandwich I was feeling some home fries, extra spicy, so I asked for a side (to which, JJ asked which side). They were good, but they needed some salt in my opinion.
After struggling through a second cup of «hot beer» because of the extra spicy nature of my breakfast, I felt content. It was a refreshing feeling though because the food is cooked in such a healthy way and now I am on to the rest of my day.
I absolutely recommend JJs café on kenmore. Try it once; if you don’t like it, at least it was a cheap hot meal with friendly service.

We’re loving this place! We Went for the first time when it warmed up for a brief moment last week. Ordered up the special and I was really happy with what the owner jokingly called the garbage plate. It has all the meats he has to offer on one plate with potatoes mixed in. It’s really tasty and has a kick to it with a spice you never taste here in buffalo. An over seas kinda kick rather than the normal vinegar Frank’s red hot spice. Such a delight to have some flavor rather than salty and just plain old spicy.
They’re a block away from our house and across the street from the Dairy Queen. That corner is going to be trouble this summer. Both have off street parking so finding a spots no prob.

Great place for diner food! The owner and his wife are wonderful and friendly. It’s nothing fancy, but the food is good. It’s kind of comfort food for me. Sometimes you just need that delicious plate of eggs and hash browns with the spice!

J-J’s is pretty much the definition of «hidden gem». I drove by it 100 times without noticing and ended up stopping in only because my first two choices had waits (thanks for the recommendation Unilocal!).
Dirt cheap, simple meals. It seems that many people come for the bottomless coffee. There were mostly regulars in for breakfast during my visit, but newcomers were welcome! Seating for 20 or so people, but service was fast and friendly. The chef (JJ?) is hysterical.
I tried the special (2 eggs, toast, and potatoes) and the pancakes. The scrambled eggs were loaded with onions and peppers. The potatoes were offered regular or spicy… I went with spicy. Not too hot, just right (note that the eggs came out pretty spicy as well). Toast was toast, and the pancakes easily stole the show. Dense with a crispy exterior. Not spongey, and they don’t need a gallon of syrup to add flavor. The special was $ 2.99 and the pancakes were $ 3.99. Can’t beat it!
No frills (syrup from Price Rite!), but lots of fresh food for a great price. I’ll be back often.

JJ’s truly has one of the best breakfasts. Food is excellent. The owners are wonderful and the prices are incredibly reasonable

The Samosa Sandwich is awesome. The owner is that chef/​cook. They are courteous and welcoming people. I always make it a point to go here for breakfast when I visit buffalo!

We had breakfast here and it was perfect. We had the western omelette and the #1 (2 eggs, home fries, toast). The coffee was very good. The service was exceptional. The owners are very friendly and it is a comfortable environment. I was very impressed with the cleanliness of the entire place. The bathroom was spotless! The dining area was clean and full of very nice pictures of family and friends. We remember J.J.‘s from over 20 years ago and it still delivers quality at a very affordable price!

I had the Tandoori Chicken Sandwich and Tandoori Chicken. Sandwich was yummy. Tandoori chicken was well cooked and not burnt (most places kind of burn it a little more than needed but here it was perfect) served with fried onions and chutney. I loved it. The quantity is good and the quality is great. Even though i felt the price is slightly higher, I won’t count it as one of the expensive places but a little bit higher than average.
Also, they accept only cash and no cards at all.

Homemade breakfast with a personality!
The only place in town to actually find an actual honest HOME COOKED, NOT homestyle, traditional breakfast. Nothing like having 4 eggs– over easy, home fries and toast!
Sure, you could go to Dennys or IHOP and get something that may be close to «equivalent,» however you’re going to pay double to triple and it’s not going to be HOMEMADE like JJ’s is.
Everytime it remind me of growing and my mom cooking me breakfast. Also receive it in 5 to 10 minutes.
Get the Double Breakfast Special with a cup of coffee. The coffee is a bottomless cup!
Otherwise, at JJ’s he has all of your traditional breakfast favorites and more like pancakes, french toast and omelettes. The menu is also NOT littered with 100 difference items that make it impossible to choose from. The menu is quite simple and straight to the point.
You can even see J cooking your breakfast right in front of you. I don’t understand how J and the rest of his family are able to still provide such a stellar service for the last 34 years. After all this time, they still make it happen and J still add’s his own personal touch and personality with literally every guest and with making a really great breakfast no matter what it is, which means a great start to the day. You’ll never have to worry about any kind of stranger or unknown person making your food hasn’t always been his family and everything is very transparent.

Small place. Really homely. Not exactly super clean and proper, but it has a nice, relaxed feel to it. Seats about 20 – 25 people from both the counter and table seats. Great service. Very friendly people. The cook is hilarious and witty. Cheap breakfast, lunch, brunch food. Endless coffee for $ 2. Definitely coming back in the future.

Small place that is very cozy and homelike. The cook is funny and sarcastic. They refill your coffee often and give you a large portion size. Definitely would come again.

I went here based on Unilocal reviews… huge mistake. It smells like mothballs in there… and the clientele wasn’t the best. I think there were actually two homeless guys eating next to us. It would make sense… the food is so inexpensive you can get full for $ 5. The food isn’t that good either.
Now…after saying all that… here’s why I’m giving this 3 stars. The owners were awesome. Welcoming, incredibly nice and funny. I’m not going back… but they were great people that give good service.

I go there every morning with my boyfriend. Food is well prepared, fast service, & great environment. We call the owners uncle and aunty, they both know us and they know our usual. The best part about it is that it’s extremely cheap! For the #1 special and garbage plate (huge dish) & drinks, cost only 13 bucks.

There used to be one of these down in Richmond, and another one in Roanoke, one in Fairfax, and one in Virginia Beach. One by one, they closed down, and now, alas, there are no VA JJ’s. It’s a shame because like many people, I really, really, REALLY loved the VA JJ’s. I thought I’d never taste anything as good as those VA JJ’s again. Until this place opened up.
What to get: Breakfast sandwich extra spicy.
What else: Anything extra spicy.
JJ was a man who thought he was a loner, but he knew it wouldn’t last. Whereas this restaurant has lasted a long time, and may it last forever and always into the future. This is one of those diners that is made, is defined, is illuminated, by its wonderful owners. It’s a couple from I’m-not-sure-where-but-it’s-somewhere-far-away. Maybe somewhere near where my father is from but I will have to ask sometime.
And they are the loveliest and most fun couple… the guy is a riot. Always loud, always friendly, always overbearing in the best possible way, always pushing his secret spicy concoctions on you and into you… so to speak. All they really make is all-​american cheap diner food (and it’s f***ing cheap, believe me, especially for North Buffalo), but it’s unlike any other cheap diner food.
Always ask for everything spicy, or extra spicy. The burger. The chopped steak sandwich. The breakfast sandwiches. The omelette. I recommend the Sausage & Egg breakfast sandwich extra spicy. It’s big and it’s under $ 5 and it’s absolutely DELICIOUS and my dining partner agreed, big time. I don’t know what kinds of spices and peppers he uses in there but it rocks my world. It’s one of the best breakfast sandwiches I’ve had anywhere.
If only he was open a bit later (closes 1.30pm) I’d be in here for these lovely jubbly luscious babies more often. But if ever a diner in this heavenforsaken city (not really, but we do get a lot of snow) deserved a ⁵⁄₅ it would be JJs. By the way, doesn’t Heavenforsaken sound like a town in New Jersey, moreover, one that is referenced in a Billy Joel song? Who needs a house out in Heavenforsaken Ken Ken Ken Ken Ken? Is that all you get for your money? And it seems such a waste of time if that’s what it’s all about. If that’s moving up then I’m… going to JJ’s. I do miss those VA JJ’s though.
So anyway back to this JJ’s.
Usually when I feel this way about a place, nobody else does, or nobody knows it exists, so I’m delighted to see so many people have already reviewed it and many of my friends actually agree with me about it. I think its location near Hertel and near UB South and near Kenmore, means it’s very accessible to several different food-​eating fan bases, so in that regard it lucked out, because I can imagine if this was out in Wheatfield, on Transit or Southwestern, I’d be like, the 3^rd person reviewing it instead of the 103^rd. Delightful.
You definitely need to try this. It’s tiny, it’s a little shack, it’s not the cleanest, it has some hilarious and offensive and crazy old signs all over the place, badly spelled and handwritten, it has naughty pix in the bathroom (seriously, well, kind of), and the couple running it are wonderful, the prices are excellent and the food… the food is utterly delicious. And the irony that I wrote this review while inside a Starbucks makes me giggly. Not girlie giggly, but… OK, maybe a little girlie.
Now having said all that, if you order anything without the extra spice, it’s a little bland. Still good though. So if you like bland, do it, but for someone that likes exotic tastes and for things to be a little different… well let’s just say there’s a reason he’s pushing all that spice on everyone that walks in, and their mother.
And make sure you go to the cinema to see that new movie about this place. The Hunger Games: Mocking JJ’s. It’s about a group of nasty people led by Donald Sutherland who take the p**s out of this place, but are vanquished at the end by a rather curvy Jennifer Lawrence… curvier than before partly because her diet to prepare for this role was eating at JJ’s every night for a year. Except that they close at 1.30pm. But you know what I mean.
The owner guy actually told me he’s thinking of opening up some new VA JJ’s again, starting with Virginia Beach. I told him, if there are any VA JJ’s, I am there, I am all over it, I’ll be in there at the very moment it opens up, and I will be going down there to sample the delicacies and deliciousness on a regular basis. I mean, that’s how delicious the VA JJ’s were (and this one is too). He says there’s not enough exposure in VA for JJ’s, but that his new VA JJ’s will change that, and he’s hoping that everyone in Virginia will come out and taste the deliciousness of the VA JJ’s. I hope he has enough money to get it started and I hope some of you Buffalonians will come down to Virginia Beach and try the VA JJ’s with me once they are open.

Alright, I’m sold. JJ’s is a divey diner, it’s a bit frigid, but Alex K is on point that restauranteurs in NYC try to craft places like this. With JJ’s, there’s no craft, just authenticity, charm and good value. The owner very obviously cares about the place and the friendliness here reflects that.
The menu is simple. Omelets, eggs and bacon. I ordered 3 eggs over easy with home fries, toast and coffee and when I checked out… my total bill was $ 5.10. I gave them a $ 20 and they gave me $ 15 back and told me not to worry about the 10 cents! You can’t get a meal with coffee for $ 5 almost anywhere these days, so I was super happy to end up in this Greek diner.
The eggs were perfectly over easy and I enjoyed putting them on a piece of rye toast and eating them. The home fries were A-​OK. If anything, I think that’s the one thing that could use some improvement.
My friend ordered a veggie omelet. I took a photo of it because it was smothered with cheese. I didn’t try it, but just make sure you like cheese before ordering an omelet.
Another friend recommended I try their breakfast sandwich extra spicy and I definitely will check that out next time I find myself at JJ’s. There is so much more to try at JJ’s — I want to come back soon and give their breakfast sandwich a try!

$ 2.89 for breakfast?! Ummm, I wish I came here sooner. With Amy’s place around the corner, I’m surprised this place isn’t packed full of College students on the regs. My goal is to tell as many people as humanly possible to go here instead. Why? No angry waitresses, and better coffee. $ 2.89 for eggs, hashbrowns and toast! Add coffee? $ 5 total for breakfast + tip. Spice on your potatoes? Do it. So good. These people have been open for over 20 years and they’re still there because they do breakfast well. It’s not fancy, it’s simple, quick, cheap and delicious. Hungover from the night before? It doesn’t matter, go here. Service is just as good as the food. Plenty of parking in the lot next door. Looking to be adventurous? Try the texas homefries for lunch! Cash only.

JJ’s is the perfect little hole in the wall, everyone knows your name, breakfast spot.
Don’t expect a big menu or fancy décor.
Just a small little diner, with a small little menu, small little prices and with a small little owner ;) but very BIG in flavor! Especially if you ask for «the spice»
My favorite is the polish sausage breakfast. We LOVE rolling out of bed on the weekends and heading over to JJ’s.

Places around the U.S. actively seek to imitate what J-J’s Café is, a uniquely neighborhood venue where locals mill about over plentiful coffee, filling breakfast specials, and carefree banter from proprietors. Restaurateurs in trendy parts of Brooklyn, Beacon Hill, and Berkeley build places like this.
J-J’s has sat at the corner of University and Kenmore Avenue for as long as anyone in this neighborhood can remember, serving basic breakfast and lunch fare between the hours of 7.00 AM and 1.30 PM. Nothing that this place does is fancy, exotic, or newfangled; you won’t find avocadoes, arugula, or fusion anything on the menu. Your choices are eggs, omelets, pancakes, soup, and sandwiches. Coffee is grim and basic, most certainly not Colombian, Brazilian, or Turkish. Nearly geriatric clientele grouse about aches, pains, bowling scores, and disputes of yesteryear.
But boy, something about the place feels so comfortable, so at home. Sitting in thoroughly broken in, nearly broken down chairs separated by mustard yellow tabletops, minutes sleepily roll over into half-​hours, into hours. If you’re not careful, one order of pancakes might turn into another. Your belly, already loaded from an omelet bulging with vegetables and cheese, might absentmindedly demand a side of toast, home fries.
Give J-J’s a chance some weekday when you can afford an hour or two. Bring a paper, or better yet, a friend.
On my way out today, one gentleman patted his belly, patted a bespectacled comrade on the back, and harrumphed, «Why do I keep coming back here? I keep getting fatter!» Because the food and atmosphere are great, of course!
Note: Hours of Operation are 7.00 AM through 1.30 PM daily. Cash only.
Pricing: Prices for breakfast specials are generally less than $ 5.00 before coffee.