Thelma’s Diner

They closed last week, which is a real shame.

I decided I wanted to take the sibs to get a quick, cheap breakfast for National Siblings Day. I’m not normally a very big fan of diners, but ultimately they’re cheaper and faster than brunch places in trendier parts of town.
It’s a good thing we got there when we did, because by the time we left every table was full. You seat yourself and a waiter will come and take your order not long after. They have a pretty typical diner menu: longer than you’d expect, a ton of breakfast options, and lots of greasy food. I was actually shocked that they had veggie burgers and other vegetarian options, because normally it’s impossible to get something without meat at comparable places. I ordered a Greek Spinach Omelet with a biscuit and side of home fries, my sister got the Pancakes with Sausage Patties, and my brother got the Country Skillet with Toast. It took a little longer to get our food than we had expected, given it wasn’t very crowded when we got there.
Everything was pretty tasty. As far as the omelet goes, there was a ton of feta in it, but I wish there had been more veggies. The home fries seemed a little skimpy, but they were only a dollar and were pretty crispy. The biscuit was warm and fluffy and I probably could have eaten about three more of them no problem. My brother devoured his Country Skillet and my sister said her pancakes were perfectly fluffy, so positive reviews all around! We got everything for $ 26 (including the tip) which I felt was pretty cheap.
I generally don’t frequent places like this, just because they aren’t usually my cup of tea. I’m actually interested in trying their veggie burger on a pretzel bun, just because I’m curious about how a diner-​esq place does veggie burgers. All in all, it’s not a bad little place!

This place has to be a hidden gem. I’ve never in this area or even the west side. But today I was doing something for work and afterwards decided to see if there was anything nearby that I had bookmarked on Unilocal.Then I end up at Thelma’s Diner.
From the outside, it really doesn’t look like the most appetizing place. It’s in a small shopping plaza like building. The sign is faded and older looking. I try not to judge a book by its cover (and more so judge on its Unilocal Reviews.) I’m glad I did so because this place is awesome.
Dan & I ordered a Pretzel Sandwich Cheeseburger. Also known as a Cheeseburger on a pretzel bun with a side of fries. A 4-​Way. and for dessert a slice of Blueberry Coppler and Chocolate Cream Pie to go.
We split our food in half so we both could try everything and we both were super satisfied with everything we got. The burger was SO fresh and tasty. I am not a fan of pretzel buns at all, but this pretzel bun was delicious. Thin steak burger-​like patty. All around goodness. The fries we got were crinkle fries, and they were kind of overcooked and a little on the hard side. The 4-​Way was the normal Cincinnati 4-​Way but with their special homemade chili. The chili is not Cincinnati-​style Chili. It’s thick, beefy chili poured over your pasta. I really liked their version of the 4-​Way. Their chili was pretty good.
We brought our dessert home because we were extremely stuffed from all the other delicious food. The Blueberry Cobbler and Chocolate Cream Pie both were tasty. The Cobbler over the Chocolate Cream Pie. I’ve had better Chocolate Cream Pie but it wasn’t bad. The Cobbler was amaze-​balls.
They have a changing dessert menu. So when you go they may have different desserts but probably equally as tasty.
The prices here are amazing. We got all of this food for $ 22. To me, that was a steal for how great this food was. The service here too, I think our servers name was Ashley? She was really helpful and cool. Super nice and welcoming staff.
Their menu is insane. It’s giant. They have all day breakfast, all breakfast items you could think of. I can’t wait to go back here soon and try some of the breakfast and other items on the menu.
This place is low key but defiantly worth the stop.

Exactly what we were looking for in our continued quest to patronize good local westside eateries. Our first visit here yesterday for a late lunch was a real treat — yummy home style cooking, friendly attentive service and a good value for the dollar. We had omlettes with sides and everything was cooked and served as we ordered. Bonus round — the place was super-​clean and comfortable. We’ll be back to try the burgers!

Oh sweet mother of home cookin’ gods. Praise be to you!
Thelma’s Diner, named after the late Thelma herself — who just passed away this month is a locally owned and operated restaurant located in a teeny tiny strip mall in Cheviot.
Now normally, I would have come here for breakfast because it’s my fav, but on this occasion we were craving a crispy, juicy, home cooked burger. You know the ones that just make you feel amazing inside? So we fired up the Unilocal app and found that Thelma’s makes all of their burgers with fresh hand packed meat and cooks them to order on their griddle.
So OF COURSE — we ordered the burger, and it was EVERYTHING I wanted it to be. Simple, classic, American burger with juice running down my arms and a nice red onion, tomato, and lettuce on top. It came with chips but we opted for crinkle fries instead (they were delish!)
We also heard they were known for their pretzel buns and we didn’t really want to order our burger with one so we ordered the hot ham and cheese. I wasn’t really expecting much (although I do love a good hot ham and cheese) but when it came out, again, it was EVERYTHING I wanted it to be. They actually cooked the ham on the griddle before and you could see the crispy marks around the edges and the cheese was super ooegy-​gooey and sandwiched in between that home made pretzel bun — it was MONEY!
They believe in making food just like mom used to make. Sit down at the counter, tell them what you want, and they make it all from scratch. It’s not fancy, but I would not consider this a diner either. It is just comfort food at it’s finest.
I also want to mention that our server was probably the nicest and most down to earth young woman I have ever had the pleasure of dining with. She told us the story of Thelma and her passing, and the traditions they have and will always keep alive. She even pointed to the counter and said, if Thelma was alive today she would be right there making everything herself. And THIS is what local buisnesses are all about. Support your mom and pops, and visit the family at Thelma’s for one hell of a good meal.

Noting special outside of mostly homemade. Special of the day was breakfast burrito, which was a flour tortilla, American cheese, over cooked breakfast sausage, & some egg. Picante jarred salsa not homemade. Finally, the water filter needs changing, water had metal taste.

Great food, and helpful server & patrons. We’re visiting from Texas, and all it took was my asking «What’s goetta?» for everyone’s heads to whiplash toward our table. «You’re not from here, are you?» I ordered a breakfast special with eggs over medium (cooked perfectly!) and the goetta, which was DELICIOUS!
Our waitress and other patrons gave us a long list of local attractions, and we have more than enough to do (and places to eat) for weeks.
We could not have had a better experience at Thelma’s. Highly recommended for tourists. :-)

Love Thelma’s. My husband comes here at least once a week and I’m here about once month. The omelette are always perfect. The sandwiches are yummy. I love the waitresses who are always spot on. Never a bad meal!

Friendly service and good food. Different specials every day. Takes a while for the food to come out but it’s because it’s all cooked fresh. Good for breakfast, lunch or dinner!

The pretzel club sandwich is the best I’ve ever had. Servers are nice and it’s cute Inside :)

We had a hankering for pancakes, so came here rather than drive super far away to the nearest IHOP. Sadly, the pancakes were not fluffy and almost gelatinous.
I also had the Greek spinach omelette, which was good! Usually omelettes gross me out a little because they’re often too big or undercooked, but this was a good size and really yummy; it had a lot of feta in it and I could tell the eggs were real, not the fake-​tasting stuff some places like IHOP uses. It was small and would definitely not have filled me up if I had just gotten the omelette, though.
I found the home fries and toast greasier than my conscious tells me I should eat.
My partner and I both had gurgling tummies and I got a little sick after eating there, but I don’t know if that was just a fluke.
Even though I am being critical, we will come back. They had a lot of other things on their menu that we want to try, including double decker sandwiches, pretzel sandwiches, and more breakfast items. We’re glad they serve breakfast all day and that they’re convenient to the west side.

Everything Thelma’s makes homemade is excellent. Greek dressing? Superb and made here.
Sawmill gravy? Done right as evaluated by my southern husband. The mashed potatoes and sweet potato fries? Well… Not so phenomenal.
The hamburger steak and the OMG éclair make up for it entirely. Just be sure to ask if they make it in house :)

This is such a find. Great and unique breakfast and lunch menu featuring sandwiches on pretzel bread. Unbelievable omelets… ever had a Greek omelet with gyro meat in it? It’s a little place in a strip mall with a real local flavor good price and great food.

This is a place you want to do well — at least I do! While the sandwiches and food are good to above average — the service is not good. @nd time in a row I’ve had really bad waitresses. Went there on a Saturday morning and had my order taken and then waited over a half hour for 2 breakfast sandwiches. Waitress never came to refill coffee or check on us. This place is small and should be able to cover orders with speed. They said our check got lost. Again this place is tiny. Should not happen and if it does offer something to make up got it. Nothing offered just said sorry. We won’t be back unless it is for take out.

I visited Thelma’s Diner today for the first time. I was suppose to meet a friend here for lunch but I ate solo. I was greeted quickly to take my order. I felt very comfortable here, staff very friendly. I order their famous pretzel bun sandwich (turkey club and chips) and for desert a snicker cake. I will return soon with my teenager.

Driven past this place several time when we come to this side of town. We were looking for something different for lunch and noticed the reviews were good for breakfast so we decided to stop in and I am glad we did. I had breakfast with gotta and it was good. I know you can’t screw breakfast up but the gotta was good but what was really good was the cheesy hash browns. My wife had the pretzel breakfast sandwich with ham and she said that was very good. We will be back to try other items from their menu.

This place is a tiny, hidden gem. It has been several other unimpressive things in the past and it was just a whim that landed us there in the first place. The place is teeny but the food is homemade and delicious. We have tried omelets, pancakes, the pretzel cordon bleu, and a fish log on a pretzel, and the cheesy potato casserole. It is all obviously made from scratch and was super tasty. Staff is ridiculously friendly and ready to please.

Not impressive from the outside but great once you go in. The menu has a great variety of homemade foods at a great price. I’ve really enjoyed everything I’ve gotten including their homemade goetta, burgers on pretzel bun, baked chicken, soups… I’ve heard their desserts are great but haven’t tried them
It’s a family-​run business and everyone is so sweet and friendly. I will be going back — and may even try their drive-​up window.