5 & Diner

We went here today for lunch. We were notified there was a 5 minute wait so we had a seat in the entry area to wait and sweat. It was ridiculously hot in that area. The rest of the restaurant was fine but the entry area was insane. Once seated we ordered and waited for our lunch. One thing we noticed while waiting for lunch was the noise level was really high.
I ordered the teriyaki chicken sandwich with fries and my husband had the New Mexico burger. My sandwich had zero teriyaki flavor so it was just a bland sandwich with a slice of canned pineapple on a slightly soggy bun with some soggy fries. My husband said his burger was just as bland but he did say the iced tea was good. The food wasn’t horrible but it was just bland and boring.
Our server was pleasant but that was not enough to make us go back.
¾/​16 Update– this place has closed. The building is gone and will soon be another Starbucks.

We have been going to 5&Diner since we moved out to Arizona which was about 7 – 8 years ago. It is typical diner food and they have great milkshakes! A very nice hostess seated us and our «usual» waiter took our orders. I recommend this place!!!:)

This location lost its’ lease and is closing today. Sorry to see it go. Thanks for all the great meals.

Not even remotely worth the price. Food was expensive and mediocre at best. ³⁄₃ people were unhappy. Waitress was nice but I would never go back and I’m not hard to please.

We LOVE this restaurant! My son, husband, and I went here last week after not visiting it for several years. It was well worth it! My son was starving and ordered french fries, spaghetti, pasta, pizza, and pancakes (typical nine year-​old fare), and it was inexpensive. He tasted what my husband and I ordered (the roast beef (him) and a veggie omelette (me). We left with plenty of leftovers, full bellies, and three satisfied customers who did not spend a lot of money. Well worth a visit.

Went here last night, thinking it’s been a while since we last went to 5 and Diner — previous experiences at other locations have been great. First impressions at this location were mighty poor — more than half of the neon signage at this place was out, including the actual logo on the front (if we didn’t know what it was already we wouldn’t have been able to tell). Second impression not good — only a few cars in the parking lot despite it being just after 7pm.
Went inside, were seated quickly. This is where the issues began. We were told a server would be right with us. Chose what we wanted from the menu, waited — no server. After about five minutes another couple came in and sat at a table off to our side. Within a minute THEIR server was with them. She asked if they needed a moment, they said yes, then she left. We continued to wait for initial contact with a server. Their server returned and took appetizer and drink orders. Still nothing. A guy appeared, cleaned off a table, and left. Nothing. The guy came back and started sweeping the floor. The other server attended to another table, then brought drinks and appetizer to the table that was seated after us. By this time we had been waiting over ten minutes without even giving our drink orders. The other server didn’t even bother to look over at us to see if we were being attended to. Completely fucking oblivious!
We got up and left, curtly telling the front door girl why we were leaving. We got an «ohhh, sorry guys!» and then we were gone. Never returning.

We have been here twice with our three young kids to take advantage of 99 cent kids meals on week nights. Yes, we are the couple with three loud toddlers who have a tough time sitting still. It’s a work in progress and we do our best to keep them calm and clean up as we leave.
During our two visits we had some pretty awful service at 5 & Diner. The looks of disdain and the lack of attention to our table were a clear sign that they were not interested in keeping us as customers.
The food wasn’t helping their cause either. Adult meals were awful and kids’ food was nothing to write home about.
Save your time and $$. Go somewhere else.

I love their fried pickles and malts, but their chicken pot pie was HORRIBLE. It was reheated in a microwave and a thick, gooey mess. Very disappointed.

No wonder this 5 and Diner has the highest ratings of them all.
Had a delightful lunch with precious teenage granddaughter.
BBQ burger perfectly cooked with amazingly delicious, un-​greasy french fries.
She totally enjoyed it.
I tried the chicken pot pie that came with a salad. Salad was perfunctory chopped iceberg lettuce with tiny pieces of tomato, croutons and cheese. Not interested in salad anyway but hoping to be wowed by the chicken pot pie.
AND I WAS!!!
Delicious pie with lovely crust and moist inners with chicken and veggies. Nice job.
Loved it so much that I ate the whole thing even though it was just lunch time.
Service from Diane was attentive without being overbearing. Loved her service style.
Thanks to all at 5 and Diner who made this lovely lunch possible.

I absolutely love this place. I love the waiters and the manager. It is a staple in my life. Food is delicious. My fav is the New Yorker with kettle chips, the shakes are great. The atmosphere is fun. Everyone is so nice. I look forward to my lunches here usually two times a month. Oh and their rewards program is pretty cool. A thirty dollar lunch on them this past Monday. Can’t beat that.

I love 5 & diner, we go during the week when we get off work and don’t feel like cooking! Its like home cooking. I am very disappointed with who ever was cooking tonight ive never complained about their food. The chicken wings were horribly over cooked and so was the burgers the fries and chips were not seasoned at all. I hope they have the other cook working again soon because this makes me not want to come back :(the server was amazing about it. She is getting a good tip and we will come back! She definitely made me change 2 stars to 5!!!

Great food. Breakfast all day. I highly recommend this place. Versatile menu. Something for everyone.

I’m frankly surprised this place doesn’t have a higher rating. We stopped in here before heading to Peoria for a spring training game. The place is so cute… the red and white leather booths, juke boxes, and décor scream «classic ‘50s diner.» We were greeted by a friendly host, who immediately seated us and took our drink order. A couple minutes later, our fabulous waitress came by for our brunch order. We ordered the eggs Benedict, 6oz cheeseburger from their «secret menu,» and a turkey cheeseburger. Everything was fantastic. I was happy they asked me how I’d like my burger cooked, so it came out perfectly medium and juicy! It was simply dressed with lettuce and tomato, but I really enjoyed it. The kettle chips it was served with were so yummy; they were clearly made in-​house and were so crispy and flavorful! The eggs Benedict were also fantastic. Although they could have toasted the English muffins a little more, they poached the eggs perfectly (these days, this seems harder and harder to come by). I can’t say enough good things about 5 & Diner – between the amazing, attentive service and the wonderful food, we really enjoyed our visit!

As a born-​and-​raised New Yorker, I’m a fan of the typical local diner. This indeed is a local diner but more than just typical. They are old-​school themed, I don’t believe they close, and their food and staff is great. Being new to Phoenix in the particular area I live in this is «the» diner for me when I’m in the diner mood.
***Update: I now bump them down to 4 stars as one weekend we experienced horrible service with guests in town. We had to remind the «new waitress» to bring us water at the least after about 10 – 15 minutes. She gave us a half-​full pitcher that was likely from a leaving table. This was after reminding her about menus and notifying her after a few minutes that we were there to begin with (we were outside). Additionally, she continuously came «short-​handed» and left one particular female friend of ours waiting each time. I’m sorry, typical courtesy in my book is «ladies first». I used to be a waiter and yet seem to give some slack when it comes to tip/​reviews, but this was just too many strikes.

Consistently good food. Look, it’s a diner. You’re not eating at the Ritz. Flashback from a better time in American history with a soda fountain, malted, breakfast served all day. Kristin was our waitress and was wonderful. We even sat next to a table with two teen girls and their mom and the girls asked «what is chicken fried steak»? I overheard and suggested turning in their mom to child protective services cause that’s criminal. We’ll see if they order it.

50s style diner, great food. I always get their chicken and waffles, perfect PMS dish, my mouth always starts watering when I think of it. so freakin good!
Their chicken fried steak and gravy is really good too. Can’t wait to go back, I’m already getting cravings.

Went here the other Monday before Little C’s TLG monday class. Place was pretty empty, but that was alright. Mondays kids eat for only $.99 which was a nice surprise.
J ordered the Francheeze, which he enjoyed. That is until he got about ¾ of the way through and noticed the bacon was not 100% cooked. He didnt eat anymore after that.
I ordered the club on sourdough. Cant really mess up a club. Bacon was fully cooked. Turkey was nice and cold. Lettuce was crisp. I ended up sharing a section of my club with J. He said, «MAN, I should have ordered the club!»
We ordered Little C a grilled cheese. Cant really mess up a grilled cheese.
Service was fast and friendly. The waitress even offered to fill up our Bobble water container, which was nice of her.
I’m pretty sure we’ll be back.

Everyone tells me I should have had one of their burgers. But it was morning and breakfast seemed like the way to go. Silly me.
Breakfast was ok. Nothing to write home about, but it was ok. Hotcakes were kind of chewy (yeah, I’m not sure they should be chewy). My Mom used to say that pancakes should be light and fluffy. My eggs (over easy) were perfect. White all cooked, but yolks still runny. Sausage patties were a little dull. I should have gone with the recommended links. Lesson learned.
Would I go back again? Yep, but I’d have a burger next time. .. even for breakfast.
Service was very good. Thank you.
Standing outside in the parking lot after wards saying goodbye to my dining companion, we noticed that one of their three (3) American flags was hanging upside down. Did that mean they were in distress? A little bit in distress? Two were right side up. Or did someone just put it up wrong and not notice? Or perhaps it was a signal for breakfast and now that it was almost lunch the distress was over. Before my companion could go in and let them know, an employee came out and reversed the distress signal. Whew! Burger anyone?

We enjoyed our visit to 5 & Diner and luckily didn’t experience any of the long waits or messed up orders that some other reviewers experienced. When we walked in we were seated right away and decided on the bar stools since they looked fun and we enjoy watching the kitchen at work.
Our waitress (Annie I believe?) was extremely nice and efficient. She checked on us regularly and refilled our drinks quickly. I had the pancakes which were just okay — they weren’t bad, but not as good as other places around town. He had the corn beef hash meal with eggs and it was tasty.
Take a walk around the place and check out all the fun décor — wish the individual jukeboxes still worked and not just the big one in the middle of the restaurant.
Overall: B
Not a bad breakfast stop off.

Carlos is the man. He’s worked here for seventeen years and he will make sure you have a good experience. 5 and Diner is a great choice for families. The fifties themed décor is fun for all. Just wish the juke box system worked. On my most recent visit I had to try to explain the concept of a hula hoop to a three year old. Since a demonstration was out of the question, I’m afraid this little one will have to wait for later clarification. She did enjoy coloring the paper hat the restaurant provided, however, and her folks enjoyed the $ 2.75 price tag on the generous junior pancake breakfast. The menu also features a separate section for seniors. While technically you have to be fifty-​five to order from this section of the menu, in my experience servers will allow anyone who would prefer these smaller portions and prices to order them. A note about prices. While the kids menu prices are very reasonable, select off menu junior beverages are a bit pricey (juice $ 1.79) and can drive up your total cost. There is also a loyalty card that will help stretch the dollar of frequent diners.
The Southwest Omelet was perfect on our recent visit and definitely worth a taste. The pancakes were uniform and served hot. In all honesty, however, it’s the décor and the friendly staff that earns the restaurant four stars in this review. Menu offerings are solid, with a few amusing names scattered throughout, but are for the most part predictable and basic. But come to think about it, isn’t that what you want from a fifties diner?
Even though 5 and Diner is not a «genuine» fifties diner, instead an Arizona based chain’s recreation of the era, it seems genuine enough. I’ve noticed that several locations have closed in recent years, but the PV location seems to be unaffected and thriving.