Carl’s Cafe

This is for sure a 4 or 5 star breakfast joint. Small town diner feel. There’s a lot of regulars here and it can be intimidating… Don’t let this scare you away too bad. Scone was awesome and I’ll be coming here just for the scone on those days I’m feeling like a scone… Literally feeling like a scone. I had the all meat omelette. The meat here is so so awesome. Loved it. Great potatoes. Minus a star for the no credit card issue and the avocado was not fresh (it was gray and black!) other than than, great food.

The food was good and appropriately priced. Fair service, a very good breakfast spot. The food did take a while to make it out of the kitchen but that was to be expected with the large crowd. Cash only

I love the local feel and small town diner feel. Everything is delicious here. Only complaint is that they don’t accept any credit cards — must be cash or check. Slightly inconvenient, but the food is awesome.

I can’t help but basically order every damn thing on the menu. I always end up with extra scones. But I’m not mad about it. Fantastic breakfast food and service is always nice and helpful. My coffee was never empty even though I drank it like I needed it to survive (accurate). I never carry cash so my first time there was confusing. But as long as you can remember to bring paper, it’ll be a solid way to start the day.

It has been a few months since I’ve actually eaten here but I can’t get over how delicious the burger I had was. I had the Brighten Burger, let me tell you, it is oh so good. Their scones are also so amazing.
The location is very small. They only have a handful of tables so it can be hard to accommodate large groups. We did come with a fairly large group of 8 and we’re seated right away on a weekday. The small ski lodge feel is really cool.

Stopped in this morning after 4 days @ Alta/​Snowbird. Had checked reviews on Unilocal.Had an awesome breakfast, great value. Waitress was friendly/​attentive, food was hot & filling…

We just moved down the street from this place a few months ago, so we didn’t know it was here. But it is the tastiest, sweetest, smallest, most perfect little Sunday breakfast spot. It has been here for 30 years, the décor looks aged, but the place is spotless! It is about the size of a tiny coffee place but the amazing food that is cooked in that tiny, well kept kitchen will blow your socks off. I am positive this place is well known by locals, a wonderful hidden gem. My husband and I feel privileged to have run into it, and plan to return every weekend. Stellar service, food quality, energy, professionalism, and passion. We are in love with the staff and the business.

Always a treat eating here. This is as close to home cooked food as you get. Locally owned, nice people serving nice people. Can’t ever go wrong with breakfast, served all day. Try the scones and a coffee, a fresh pot is always brewing.

It was just ok. The portions were large, but not huge. The burrito was bland. It came with salsa on the side which tasted like Pace Pincante Sauce. I asked for mayo and they got me generic mayo packets. Not impressed. Staff were not too attentive. I probably won’t be coming back.

You want traditional American breakfast? Come on over! It’s absolutely delicious– and to be honest it’s nothing more than simple: eggs, bacon and hash. (I would give a higher review otherwise). It is a small place so get there early and don’t go with groups of more than 4!

LOVE LOVE LOVE this little place near my house that I seem to visit far too seldom. I’ve only had breakfast, and the CFS and eggs and B&G are SOLID, the staff is incredibly friendly, and the ski décor is a serious throwback to the days of $ 10 lift tickets at the resorts up either of the canyons to the east. This is a simple diner with simply good food, but nothing too fancy. Take cash because there, plastic is not accepted, which is the only reason I knocked off a star.

This is one of my absolute favorite breakfast/​brunch places in the Valley. Their Reuben sandwiches make this New York girl feel so much more at home in the SLC. And the omelettes are to die for!
As far as the no credit card thing goes… I’m a serial entrepreneur and I totally understand how credit card fees can kill a small business. So I have no hard feelings about the cash issue, particularly given their pricing.

Food was good. Portions were good for the price. They are cash only which I didn’t expect. I only had $ 10 in cash so I couldn’t leave much of a tip and that bugged me except that the waitresses were really unfriendly so I guess it all worked out.
I don’t know if I’ll be back. I usually don’t carry cash and I prefer to go some place where the wait staff is more friendly.

There aren’t many breakfast places open in the fort Union area on Sundays– that’s how I found myself at Carl’s. It was pretty standard, low-​mid level diner fare. I had a Denver omelet, and it wasn’t great, but it wasn’t terrible either. I can’t say that I would recommend this place, but if left with few options again, I’d go back.
Note, when I visited they did not accept credit cards.

The food was Classic American Skiier Breakfast. The omelet was prepped fresh, quick, tasty. «Cozy» and «Local» would be the look of the place. The help was pleasant. I would say three stars, slightly better than average, except… the scones. ***UTAH SCONES***. I found you again, and just around the corner. Can’t beat that! You get four stars, Carl’s.
BUT: cash or check only. I didn’t notice the little handwritten sign on the way in. My credit card lifestyle bit me. I had to walk over to Walgreen’s and buy a candy bar to pay for my meal. Oh well, I’ll get over it.

Carl is one of those friendly breakfast places on a strip mall. They are just east of Highland Dr. in Cottonwood Heights. There may be some waits during peak breakfast/​brunch hours. They are also a perfect gathering place for breakfast with Asians, as long as you are an honorary member as well… ;)
Most of their dishes seem to be sidekicks and extras for the main star side item… I had the breakfast burrito and it was just ok, other dishes they got just seem decent as well. The scones are probably the most awesome things to get here, better than any other ones I had in state, very crispy on the outside and fluffy on the inside. Load some butter and honey on it, then it was like a dream came true.
Service had been great here, I never had many issues unless they were very busy, but they still push things through at an efficient pace.

Great little place that has really good food for breakfast. I didn’t try lunch yet. I just tried their veggie blast breakfast with sourdough, and shared a scone with my friend.
The veggie blast had potatoes that were sooo amazing. This dish was like a pile. Think potatos, bell peppers, mushrooms, tomatoes topped with cheese then eggs on top. Baaaam, your taste buds are rocking and rolling. Their scone was so good, I’m sooo picky with scones and potatos so this place totally expressed me.
Keep in mind this is a small restaurant, and like today It’s full. However, the staff is on it, and working pretty hard to help everyone. Customer service is great!

This is the place where you go or take out of towners to when they appreciate local classic eateries. Old school skis and pictures fill up the dark paneled wood walls. There are roughly 10 tables and 3 bar seats with every condiment you would need for breakfast already on the table. They do fill up quick on the weekends — wait your turn! The food is made when you order it, so be patient. There are always 2 servers here — but they know what they are doing so you never go without. They are cash only, and are only open until 2:30.
They make those crazy Utah scones (fried) like I have never experienced before, and I love them. Slather it up with butter and honey. mmmmm. Every option imaginable for what you would want for breakfast is on that menu. Somehow they have figured out how to not make it overwhelming, but there are more than enough options for every personality. You want a vegan breakfast? Get it. You want a mountain of meat omelet? It’s your lucky day. Fruit, toast, breakfast sammy’s, hashbrown scrambles with variations galore — check, check, check. The best part? Prices range from around $ 4 – 9 depending on how crazy you get that morning or the amount of your cashflow lining your pockets.
The only downside to this place really is their gravy for biscuits/​gravy and the chicken fried steak. It taste like my mother dumped her «stash» of grease she accumulated over the years back into the pan to make gravy thinking those years of flavors would make something spectacular. Kind of like how they are making sequels for movies that were hits 10 years ago. It just doesn’t work, and they aren’t funny.

Yep, this restaurant is a hole in a wall. Never noticed it was there till a friend mentioned it.
Oh my god, I LOVE their scone! It is golden and crispy outside and the inside is fluffy and dough-​ish. The shape of their scone is not flat but more a donut shape without a hole in the middle. One of my favorite entrée is Scone of Plenty with sausage. Pure goodness!
The servers are always friendly and cheerful except last time we were there. I think the blond one was having a bad day.
Warning: wear something that you will wash right away because you will smell like fried oil afterward. Or else, you closet will smell like it too! Btw, take a shower afterward too.

Carl’s has the «hole in the wall» feel that could mean a hidden gem or something to be avoided. Based upon our first visit, I would lean more towards the latter.
To be fair, when it comes to places like this, I find it wise to manage one’s expectations. The menu options were unique from other little diners, which we appreciated. I ordered the omelette special that was filled with turkey, bacon, and cheese, topped with avocado. We also ordered the Big Cottonwood which was filled with bacon, asparagus, and cheese.
The first thing I noticed when the plates were presented was the sad state of the avocado, not just the amount, but also the fact that it was slightly brown. I understand that avocados oxidize, but probably not in the time it takes to get from the kitchen to my plate.
As you can tell from the picture, the potatoes were far from crispy with several of them flirting on the uncooked side. One or two of them had to be spit out.
The eggs that made up the Omelet… I still don’t know. I’ve worked with eggs from a bag before and these had a similar texture and mouth feel. They might have been «real» eggs, but they had more of a gelatin feel for sure.
So what was good?
The service, very friendly, although the staff definitely gave off a «come as you are» dress appearance.
The Bacon. The bits in the Omelet were tasty and crisp.
The price. It isn’t a super great value, but you aren’t getting ripped off either.
Overall this seems like a local haunt that has survived due to the locals keeping it going. We probably won’t be contributing to the cause, but I won’t say that we wouldn’t maybe give their lunch menu a try someday.
I noticed that they have Zucchini bread on their menu so that alone might be worth another try.