The Eatery

Want something to eat but you’re not sure what this is the place to go they have everything!
A scratch kitchen that serves up big portions hot and tasty great place for breakfast lunch or dinner and a salad bar to boot

I’ve had the chicken fried chicken, the chicken fried steak, the prime rib, and several breakfast options. All have been very good, although I found the house sausage to be inconsistent. When it’s good, it’s great, but once in a while it’s not quite up to speed. Their pancakes are delicious but a tad pricey at 8 bucks for a rather small portion. I think you could up the size a bit and still make a good profit, it is after all just pancake batter. I do love the salad bar, everything is always fresh, it’s kept very clean and well stocked. Whoever manages The Eatery knows what they’re doing, that’s for sure. Great staff, well trained and efficient without being condescending or annoyingly over friendly. All in all this is a winner for Lincoln, and unfortunately for my diet, too close to home! Good job Eatery, keep it up!

Went there for first time on a Sunday morning. Steady but no wait. Very clean, nice atmosphere and excellent service. I had the chicken supreme omelet and upgraded to the huge, homemade cinnamon roll! The frosting was cream-​cheesy and extra buttery, I want a bowl of it! Omelet was excellent, loved the parm cream sauce! My mom had the mile high and dad one of the scramble bowls, both looked good. They even had gluten free toast! Will be back, can’t wait to try lunch and beautiful salad bar!

Much like Village Inn for their presentation and food choices. If you like places like that, then you’ll probably really enjoy this restaurant.
The food was actually pretty tasty and was priced reasonably.
The establishment itself could use a bit of redecorating/​cleaning but overall I had a positive experience.

A great breakfast spot near Mid-​town Lincoln, NE. I recommend the Chicken Fried Steak and Petite Sirloin.

This is outwardly a pretty traditional American restaurant. The menu is extensive with the usual American dishes that are well prepared. What sets it apart is the service in our view. Very friendly and well trained and supervised staff. I ordered the ribs with the sauce on the side one evening and after a reasonable time my wife’s meal arrived, and mine too but no ribs. Our waitress apologized and said the kitchen inadvertently put the sauce on the ribs, said it would only take a minute to bring the correct meal, and offered me a plate for a free trip to the salad bar. Accidents will happen but they are always looking out for the customer and very attentive. Like many restaurants it can get noisy when there is a crowd. The booths are really soft, almost too much so in some places.

I’ve only been to this restaurant once but I will be back very soon! Great service and best salad bar I’ve had in a long time!

1^st time here, i will definitely come back again. Staff was great, clean place. Got the biscuits and gravy and eggs Benedict and they where on point!

Had a delicious bacon cheeseburger, nicely seasoned french fries, and a local beer. Service was fantastic (thanks, Kelsey!). Atmosphere is equivalent to Village Inn or Perkins.

I came to this restaurant because of Unilocal reviews. I had seen that had «the best fried chicken in Nebraska». My server was incredibly short and to the point with me– like she couldn’t wait to get out of my presence. I asked about the possibility of getting fried chicken with a waffle and she said they could definitely do that.
My plate came back with a Belgian waffle and three chicken strips. I apologized to the waitress and explained that I was actually expecting fried chicken, like the off the bone kind, she went to her manager to «see what he wanted to do». The manager came over and and in the most politely condescending manner informed me that they’ve never had fried chicken and more than once informed me that there was «no way» I could have seen that they did on the Internet.
I ate the meal which was mediocre, just a Belgian waffle and freezer chicken strips… The service was horrendous. I was able to get one refill and like I said, she was I constantly trying to get away, I even had to even stop her from leaving my table to order onion rings. She didn’t clear one item from my table (to be fair, another friendlier waitress saw and removed my plates at one point) It should be noted that the onion rings were good. That is only the reason why I felt 1 star was merited for this establishment.
This was my first experience at the Eatery and I will definitely not be coming back. Maybe it was because I was alone and not as important as a bigger party… Or maybe they just treat everyone like this. It definitely wasn’t crowded tonight. Who knows, I’m not going to come back to find out. Definitely going to tell my school friends and encourage people to stay away

I’ve been hearing lots of great things about this place so i decided to take my mom, who is from out of town, here for lunch. We both had an wonderful meals. They have a delicious salad bar and the best chicken fried steak i’ve ever had! The service was great as well. I will highly recommend this place to anyone!

Local diner with great homestyle cooking. Being from the South, I was craving some fried chicken, and this was the best chicken I’ve had so far in Nebraska. I also got the coconut cream pie for dessert – always a good choice :)
The service was great. Our server, the manager, and the entire staff were incredibly friendly, just adding to the comfortable feel of the whole restaurant. Definitely a good place if you’re craving pie!

The Eatery provides a pleasant eating experience that is cost effective and tasty. There are plenty of options on the menu so chances are you’ll find something that sounds good. Best of is the homestyle cooking. Just like home. Good dinning can certainly be found here. Thumbs up.

The onion rings are the best in town! Make sure to get onion ring dip! Probably in my top 5 favorite things ever! I usually get the chicken salad croissant which is excellent. Last time I got pasta with grilled salmon and it was excellent! One of my favorite Lunch time places. The salad bar is epic and totally worth it. The only thing I didn’t like was the patty melt. Usually is just a Burger patty with grilled onions and cheese on rye. They added weird spices to the patty so it was like Salisbury steak on it, no Bueno. But I am still exploring the menu and I know the onions rings are worth the visit alone. Oh and the peanut butter chocolate shake is bomb, ask for it in a to go cup so you can take it with

I have eaten here often. Everything I have tried on the menu is good! I wish the kids meals were better. One piece of bread for the french toast and it costs $ 4? No thanks. Good food. Almost never a wait to get a table.

II like a good old fashion greasy spoon diner for my comfort food. This is a busy place but we did not have to wait very long. This is a great place to come and enjoy some good old fashion grinds. They have all the breakfast favorites and lunch fare you could ask for and more. The staff was nice and the prices are certainly not going to break the bank for good food. The atmosphere is a little weathered but I can overlook that as long as they treat me like family.

Quintessential «Heartland» cooking is served up at The Eatery.
I’ve been dining here since I was a kid. There have been some changes along the way; some big, and some not so.
It’s gone from being «The Pantry», to being «Howard’s Pantry», to its current name. I am not all together sure about that new moniker, but that’s not what is important.
What is noteworthy is that the food is consistently good. That longevity is to be applauded. And it offers alcohol now, which it never did during its «pantry» days.
If you know about the long-​lost sandwich called Cheese-​Frenchie, then come by and order one. The Cheese-​Frenchie is alive and well here, and no one prepares it better. Of course hardly any restaurant does offer it anymore. This sandwich represents a by-​gone era in this part of the USA. It was «haute cuisine» in its day; in-​demand as much as the hamburger. I am not going to tell you how its made. Just try it and see. Better yet, bring a bunch of kids and observe their reactions! Get the ½ sandwich and soup. Pair the Cheese-​Frenchie with a bowl of their homemade tomato basil bisque – perrrrfect.
Great breakfast, all day. The menu for this is extensive.
The weekend prime rib special is killer. There are 2 size options and it melts in your mouth. The loaded potatoes and many veggie sides to choose from are dreamy. Starts at 5 pm on Fridays and Saturdays, until it runs out. Get there early is my recommendation.
They offer some of Nebraska’s newer micro-​brews. I was blown away by Cornstalker, a dark beer made from wheat and a bit of corn, made in Kearney. Where in the world have you been all my life?!
What truly rules here is dependable comfort food.
It’s a very clean establishment; the floor crews hustle and are quite personable; and the prices are reasonable.
The acoustics are perhaps not the best. The space is a curious octagon shape, with windows that wrap around the entire restaurant and booths galore. I do love a large booth.
The Eatery is an original and to be cherished.

Came here for a late breakfast midweek. The place had a crowd that seemed promising. Menu had a wide variety even at 11 with ability to get breakfast all day, winner in my book.
We ordered veggie omelet and chicken fried steak accompanied with coffee. Our waitress was friendly and kept our coffees always full during our meal. My omelet was delicious and included fresh ingredients. We had asked for blueberry syrup and they did not have it so we were surprised with blueberries in our pancakes-​delicious.
This is definitely a diner with a small town feel but the menu boasts some good dinner selection and lunch selection. They serve alcohol as well. I could see this replacing my trips to greenfield’s in the future.
I can’t say enough about the service. All waitstaff was friendly and gave meal recommendations to those around us. Visit for the home cooked food and enjoy the friendly staff and fresh food. For breakfast in the price point I’m not sure it can be beat in Lincoln.

I’m sitting at my desk having a foodgasm over a patty melt and cottage cheese. I’ve been to the Eatery at least four times and have always left pleased with my selection. They have a lot of wonderful options, which is the worst part of the whole experience. There grilled cheese sandwiches are very very good. Loaded baked potatoes are good. Onion rings. The beauty of the Eatery is you can have breakfast, sandwiches, soup, entrees, whatever your heart desires.
Within the last few years they also underwent a complete renovation (formerly known as the pantry) so the interior is fresh, fun and clean. They are always busy, which is definitely a good sign, and this is THE place where a lot of older adults who don’t have to be stuck behind a desk meet and eat. But that has never deterred me.
I also want to say that the customer service is outstanding. Everyone is very friendly, willing to help, great to work with. I will be going here again and again.

Cleanliness 4
Service 4
Food 3
Likelihood 3
1 – 5 (5 Best!) 3.5
My first visit! The restrooms smelled like bleach, thank you! VERY CLEAN ALSO! Thank you.
Our server was fun and attentive. Good job. I ordered pancakes and biscuits and gravy. The pancakes were steaming hot and tasted great. The biscuits and gravy tasted great and was cold. I sent it back. When it returned, it was obvious they simply microwaved the plate (you could have changed plates) BETTER YET… bring your food to proper temperature before serving it!
I looked at their buffet food, and there is no way I would try it, the food looked expired, and not fresh.