Balilo

I’ve loved this friendly no frills diner for years. The location is great. The food and service are good. No complaints at all. Places are often what you make them. (By the way, giving low ratings to a restaurant because you were stupid enough to set your wallet on the counter and walk out is asinine. This is a big city, and you, reviewer, are the idiot. Also complaining about the prices is stupid too. The prices are on the low side. This is Midtown Manhattan. Some of you reviewing fools expect Park Ave service at Ohio prices. Idiots. And seeing a bug in the city?! omg. Call the CDC! Fools.)

I go here because it is close to work however… today was my last straw. I waited forever to get my order taken, stood in line and watched the lady at the register try to over charge the gentleman in front of me and he had to correct her and tell her he ordered the same thing the day before and was charged almost $ 2 less. When I go to pay for my order she over charged me for an iced tea by $ 2 so I asked her to remove it and had to stop her from charging me for it (she was still about to swipe my card for the amount with the iced tea… a BLT and Iced T was $ 10.89…not worth it for a dive like this) and then gave me an attitude and asked me if I expected my order for free… came to find out the same nasty woman at the register overcharging people and unaware of the prices is the owner… I’ve been going there for 8 years and know what I’ve paid for my breakfast… she was a NASTY woman with a NASTY attitude who tried to overcharge me and other customer’s and she is the owner… I will never return… subpar food and horrible service are never acceptable. Luckily many new places are opening up nearby and we now have options in the neighborhood.

I think some of these people reviewing, shouldn’t be allowed to leave reviews, if your looking for 5 star service go to park ave and pay that service, this place is convenient quick service spot, roaches come on grow up. Your in NYC where have you been hiding under rock you idiot. People like you put mom n pop store out businesses for stupid ass comments.
I apologize for some of these people. Keep up the good work people.

Went in with a co worker and saw a roach on the cheesecake! EWWWW. about to report this to the health dpt.

It’s Friday tradition to have my pancakes and bacon here. They know my order, don’t even ask me anymore. Good diner food, no surprises, no frills. I adore the Friday waitresses, and have no plans to be seduced by any other diners in the neighborhood. That is unless they tear this down, with the plan to build another high rise. I hope it isn’t true, with Hudson across the street serving the worst breakfast food I have ever had!

Conveniently located close to work, Balilo is just what every neighborhood needs– no frills breakfast that delivers on decent food and nice service. A large cup of coffee for my walk to work is only $ 1.75— perfect.
We come in for breakfast a few times a week and are always greeted and asked for our choice of preferred seats. Not fancy, not over-​the-​top, they provide a solid breakfast you can afford… I usually get the NY omelet with coffee, toast and juice. $ 6.35. The servers already know how and what we like to drink and come promptly when we need them.
All in all, a stand-​up meal that won’t break the bank accompanied with friendly service

My coworkers and I order breakfast here atleast 3x a week. I can honestly say I dont know how they deliver so fast but Im not complaining…
Love this place!

Solid, fresh and inexpensive food serving all your dine favorites. I work close by this place is my go to for egg white omlette is the am and salad at lunch. They also chop your salad very well… And the 2 waitresses are wonderful!!! Looking forward to lunch here today

The place is a cool deli /​restaurant and has lots of seating, unfotunately their location and lack of competition leaves them sorely overpriced. They have lots of menu options so feel free to order anything from soup, hot/​cold sandwiches and tasty salads. I ordered a chicken cutlet on a roll and was charged almost $ 9 bucks. I bit my tounge and rolled out but if you think ill be ordering another expensive ass chicken sandwich you have another thing coming. Great place, great options but I understand why there perpetually always kinda empty. You guys need a roll back pricing plan!

Not a bad little diner if you’re in the area and need to grab a quick bite to eat.
I was here for breakfast after dealing with some car issues at the nearby BMW dealership. It is close by to a lot of auto dealers in the area so if you have time to kill, this is a decent spot to grab a seat and some coffee as well.
The food itself wasn’t particularly inspiring. I would say the breakfast platter (eggs, bacon, toast etc) was just okay in terms of taste. But the price is relatively cheap which is a plus and you get bottomless coffee which is always great in the mornings. The service was actually decent. I came in expecting shoddy service based on past reviews but the waitress was actually very friendly and took good care of us despite having a lot of tables under her watch.
I’d say if they can kick up the food quality by a notch then I’d definitely give this place more stars. At least the service was decent and the bathrooms are clean!

I came here about a week ago and didn’t have the same bad experiences as other reviewers. I work in this area as well and can vouch for the limited selections for lunch in the area. I found this place from other co-​workers who have also had good experiences.
I ordered the chicken cordon bleu sandwich, which came with chips. I wasn’t in the mood for a healthy lunch that day, so I got what I wanted and it was delicious.
I’ll return since it is very close to my office when I’m in the mood for diner food.

If you are looking for what is an old school diner, no frills but good food at a very good price, then Balilo’s is your place. Despite being off the beaten path, the food is good wait staff is friendly and prices are good. However, this about no frills… if you want chic chic this is not for you.
For a classic Saturday eggs and bacon and coffee. Its worth a try.

I work close by. Its literally the closest place to order from and my co-​workers and
I refuse to order from this place EVER. They are a RIP OFF. They change the prices when they feel like it. I’ll order a ham and cheese with a coffee and one day it’ll be $ 5 and the next it will be $ 8. NEVER consistent. The food isn’t even great. The employees are rude and if they’re not frustrated with an attitude, they are hitting on me. It’s also quite ridiculous that they won’t offer our company any type of percentage off for ordering from there. Oh and PS: Any and every time you’ll stop in there you’ll leave smelling like the grill for the rest of the day.

Balilo combo is a steal. Eggs, bacon & pancakes, coffee as well, for $ 9. Super friendly people. As I was sitting on the counter side of the room, I overheard the cooks & servers greeting everyone & chatting with regulars. Very comfortable diner feel to everything. Only minor complaint is that the pancakes were a little dense for my taste, so I guess I’ll just have to try the French toast or waffle next time.

Awful. I hope that people are reading these reviews before they attempt this poor excuse for a diner. The food is way overpriced. There is no quality to the food. It’s poorly made and quite frankly they do not care. My colleague ordered a pasta dish and all they did was slap something onto a plate and microwave it. It was still cold in the middle. I ordered a chicken cutlet hero. Just one bite and you can tell that bread is not fresh and possibly older than you can guess. The cutlet itself was dry thin meat fried in oil.
Please do not eat here. This place needs to go!

Had a decent breakfast here today — Balilo combo. Good coffee. I was also pleased to be greeted by NYC «A» rating on door. Waitstaff were kind people. Only half criticism is that the place is not that cozy. Half of the restaurant is a counter deli which changes the feel from your typical diner feel.

ONLY COME HERE IF YOU WANT TO GET RIPPED OFF
I work near by and my coworkers and I used to order from them a lot. The common complaint is that they change their prices without notice all the time. We order the exact same thing, a western omelet for example, and one day it will be $ 6.50 and the next day it’ll be $ 8.00, then the next day another change. Also, the guy behind the counter is so rude yelling at me to stand to the side to wait for my order, when i was already walking over to the side. The cashier is no better — I was waiting in line and a lady next to me skipped me, and I spoke up, yet the cashier still insisted taking that lady’s order first.
Other co-​worker complaints include under cooked food, slow delivery, and just plain getting the order completely wrong.
These people are the rudest and sneakiest business people. Their food is only OK at best, it doesn’t justify their dishonest and disrespectful behavior. Make the trip to Strokos on 58^th and 10^th. It’s worth the extra 5 minute walk.

Great location, fast service and decently priced. I usually only come in to get a bagel and/​or a drink so not sure how the rest of the food is like. A toasted everything bagel with cream cheese is $ 2.01 — cheaper than Dunkin Donuts!

Fast delivery if you live in the surrounding buildings. Have ordered breakfast from them a few times, coffee is usually very good as are the pancakes and french toast. Really good chicken soup!
I wouldn’t describe them as overly polite but, they get the orders right and fill them quickly. Not pet friendly!!! I had my 5 lb dog in my purse while running in to get a bagel one morning and the man behind the counter told me i had to wait outside for my order. I understand, but he was definitely rude about it, considering the dog was in a bag and it was a quick togo order. So if your with your doggies skip this place.

This self described deli/​bakery/​restaurant is located near my job, its new, and its clean so I decide to go over and patronize the place. The positive attributes end here — the men at the counter who take the salad and sandwich orders are rude and surly (the women are professional and sweet, order with them), the inferior food quality is unforgivable, and the pricing is ridiculous.
For example, I ordered for my office mate and I, a simple salad with mushroom, celery, ham, feta, onion, and tomato. The price…$ 9.25 for a small salad. My office mate got a corned beef sandwich on rye. The bread was stale, corned beef overly salty and had a fat to meat ratio of 3:1.
I would say avoid this place like the plague unless you are desperate, need to use the restroom, and are a glutton for punishment.