E.T. Encounter Diner

Great décor, as I am an alien fan. However they apparently have changed the menu form what Red Planet served and have yet to update the menu. It has been quite a few months since the change. Went here a 2^nd time when my alien loving friend visited, despite my 1^st crappy experience, and they still did not serve the items from before (The vegetarian options). So I get the greasy veggie sandwich which, on first bite, squelches out a pepper slice onto my new outfit, I was not pleased. We asked specifically about if the mashed potatoes came with a veg friendly gravy and was told it was a mushroom gravy. It came with beef mushroom gravy. Ordered the falafel plate and got 2 baby size falafel balls on top of dry pita and surrounded with lettuce and tomato, open face style. We were really bummed because we had been looking forward to going here and were starving, so you would think the food would be better when hungry, but not so. Great place for some fun pics, but don’t come for the food if you are vegetarian, or a foodie.

Great dinner atmosphere, but staff does not have their hearts in their jobs. Food could be a lot better; it is below par. It could be a great dinner, some day, If the food improves.

The service was awful. We had to ask for napkins and never did get silverware. We had the nachos asada. What a joke. The asada was ground beef (I think. It certainly wasn’t steak) and it was topped with cheese whiz. Lots of wait staff but they were busy eating. Save your money. Go somewhere else

You come here for the atmosphere. The kitschy alien theme is definatley fun, and the staff are friendly. The food is your standard diner fare with a hint of southwest thrown in. My wife had the guacamole Burger which she really enjoyed. I had the veggie quesadilla which was OK, bit not bad. Surprisingly good iced tea. One of the VERY few moderately priced places to eat in Sedona.

Oh dear. Our waiter was so nice I hate to leave a poor review but I have to be honest and fair. This might not be a bad place to take a group of young kids for a birthday party for a hotdog and milkshake perhaps, but don’t come here for good food.
It’s a diner, so I was not expecting gourmet, but the soup, although homemade, was horrible. Tasted like liquid cornstarch. Milkshake was good. Tuna fish sandwich was so-​so. Hamburger decent.
Décor is delightfully tacky. Prices are cheap for the area.
Overall, it’s ok but we can’t recommend.

On a weekend trip from Phoenix and this place used to be decent a few years ago. Stopped in for breakfast at 8:30AM with my family.
Tried ordering biscuits and gravy from their own menu but was told sorry they haven’t made any biscuits today. This is also a weekend.
So I substituted what I originally wanted and went with huevos rancheros. That was also a mistake. The food came out terribly cold. Sent back the plates and they offered to warm them up. Yuck.
My advice, stay away from this place.

My family and I had ate in this restaurant multiple times but we had not been back for 4 years. Since our most resent visit the restaurant is outdated and needs a little TLC. I ordered coffee and it came out Cold. My husband and son ordered biscuits and gravy. The waitress has came back to make us aware that they have not made biscuits yet. (9am on a Sunday morning).
Both my husband & I ordered huevos Rancheros.
When our food came out tortillas cold, beans cold, green chili sauce cold.
Very disappointed & we won’t be back.

First time in sedona, i thought the place looked cool, unfortunately i ordered soup and then was told they didnt have it when my burrito came, then i ordered a carne asada burrito and i ended up recieving a chicken burrito which was ok .no place setting. I wont be back

We passed this place numerous times on our way in and out of town, so glad we finally stopped in! Cute, kitschy place, but the food speaks for itself, and the extra-​terrestrial gimmicks are just icing on the cake!
We got here early-​ish (about 6 – 6:30pm) for dinner, and were the only ones here, though it did continue to fill up as the evening progressed. We were welcomed by a great host (wish I remembered to get his name) and after attempting to take in all the SUPER COOL space/E.T. stuff, we ordered drinks and took a look at the awesome, «out-​of-​this world» themed menu. Great selection of fresh sounding, creatively done bar food/​salads/​Tex-​Mex. I went for the veggie quesadilla, which was BURSTING with veggies (and not overpowered by the cheese, a plus!!) and the Mr. got a perfectly cooked burger and fries. Super service, and unique place to enjoy a great, relaxed meal!!!
We were so lucky with this trip, and whether we chose a hole in the wall or a more established, «must-​try» standout, we were NEVER disappointed with our choices, and this place was no exception! Give it a try… It’s (sorry…) OUT OF THIS WORLD! ;-)

Came in because of the décor. Food was worse than being abducted, but better than being probed.

A very kitschy outdated restaurant, but pretty good. We both ordered the chili burger and we were happy. I absolutely HATE burgers, but this one was pretty good and had great flavor. Even though it’s pretty touristy there were quite a few people there, and we over heard a couple mention that they live in Sedona and visit quite often. It’s nice to know that it’s not just for tourists. I personally don’t care for the outer space theme, but we were honesty looking for something that was open later that wasn’t fast food! I think it deserves a visit back at another time.

The Truth Is Out There… There is actually a restaurant open later than 9 P.M. in Sedona! We ate here back when it was called Red Planet Diner, and while the marquee signage now says ET Encounter Diner, the main signage on the restaurant still reads Red Planet.
We came into Sedona late at night around 9ish and were starving. We stepped in and noticed aside from the missing alien dioramas on the side tables, not a whole lot has changed from the previous incarnation of the restaurant. If you are a UFO or alien fanatic this is your place as every square inch of the restaurant is extraterrestrial themed. I will mention that I do miss those dioramas since I was hoping to see the one of an alien watching Picard on Star Trek TNG again after all these years. :)
We ordered the potato skins, and ordered a chili burger and Roswell burger. The potato skins were delicious, filled with crispy bacon and green onion with sour cream on the side. The Roswell burger was excellent. The green chile and jalapeño were great with the pepper jack cheese, and my burger was perfectly medium rare. The meat was very juicy and the bun was a soft pretzel roll. I had sweet potato fries with the order and they were sweet, light, and crisp. I didn’t have any of the chili burger so I can’t comment too much on it, but know that it will be served open-​faced on top of a pretzel roll.
I also had a pineapple shake which was creamy with a lot of pineapple bits in it. It was a sizable amount and quite tasty.
Service was friendly and we were checked up on as needed.
I also enjoyed the music they played on the speakers. It reminded me of the MTV era back when they actually used to play music videos (‘80s-‘90s).
Definitely a great casual and quirky place to eat if you’re in Sedona.

Pleasantly surprised. Very warm, friendly staff Gerardo served us. Wonderful! Food was excellent and tasty. Fun, space-​themed atmosphere. Very pleased.

It’s our first time back to Sedona since 2009 and the first thing we wanted to do when we arrived today was get a Red Planet burger. I was nervous when we saw the new name…“please don’t tell me they changed the glorious kitsch within and awesome burgers…”
Turns out the food is even BETTER than the previous times we’ve visited! The portions were huge, the burgers cooked to perfection, and the best fries — perfect crisp, not too greasy. The guys serving lunch today were very friendly and funny — it was a great experience. We can’t wait to go back!
So if you like really good burgers with a quirky side of SciFi kitsch, this is a place you don’t want to miss!

Lets face it, this place is still on here under the old name of Red Planet Diner as well. This is how I always knew it as a 5 time visitor to Sedona. My kids have me bring them here whenever we come, as a tradition. Now, my last visit 5 years ago, I was disappointed severely by the lack of «give a crap» by the staff. This does not seem to be the case now. Under what appears to be new ownership, it looks like they are putting a good effort toward their diner food. The burgers were cooked well and the pretzel bun was a nice touch. Fries are fries, they were not bad. The broccoli and cheese baked potato was done nicely with plenty of broccoli and cheese. It was not oily cheese leaving a puddle of grease. I have to say it was a good potato.
The main issue is that the new ownership needs to put a little effort and upkeep into the décor, since they are taking over a kitschy place and because the place is frequented because of the atmosphere (pun intended). Repair the décor. If you want a lit spaceship in the middle of the room, don’t leave just a spiral bulb that everyone sees regularly as the main bulb of the ship. Add a bit more bling. Have star trek episodes on TV, have sounds of sci fi. IN other words make the EXPERIENCE more than just looking at a few broken trinkets.

This is a really cool place and I think it’s worth a visit. Loved the way it’s decorated and we had no problem with our service or food. I had the patti Melt which was cooked perfectly. It held together and was crunchy just the way I like it. Hubby went with the cheesesteak and he enjoyed his fries more then the sandwich but it was still good. The kids will love this place and you won’t spend a fortune. It’s a diner so don’t expect 5 star food but do expect an interesting encounter. Let’s keep this place open folks. Milkshakes and ice cream too so something for all humans

Dead (actually still twitching) fly on the counter where we sat. Four drinks, not a napkin in sight. Happy hour ends at 6. Starting at 5:55 we started trying to get the waiter’s attention. Finally walked over to where he stood chatting with an employee who had just arrived. Verizon said it was 5:59, he said their register said 6 and happy hour was over, and that he couldn’t do anything about it. I guess they don’t need our business.
Edit: I forgot to mention how sticky the countertop was.

The service is excellent. The food is great and delicious. The malts are better then johnny rockets. Chili cheese fries delicious.

Eclectic little spot that caters to sci-​fi fans, particularly Roswell UFO chasers and alien sighting experts. Got directed here by local taxi driver for burger and shake. Should have followed gut instinct to just stay on course daydrinking and forego the carbs. Menu and décor were overkill with the alien theme. I like simplicity. Burgers were overcooked. I like my meat mooing just a little to get some juice and flavor. Service is a bit slow, perhaps because it was Father’s Day. The outside smell of mesquite and grilled meat was such a teaser and disappointed food was not out of this world.

We decided to visit Sedona for a fun deviation. It was a little late in the evening, and we stumbled across the E.T. Encounter Diner. It seemed like a niche, fun restaurant, so we stopped in.
We enjoyed the décor, it was nicely done and obviously someone put quite a bit of time and thought into making the diner look nice, but still «out of this world.» Which made us want to stay and eat.
The prices were a little steep, and the food was a little above average. The three of us ordered «Space junk,» an appetizer we thought would be more amazing for the price. For entrees, we ordered a Reuben, the Falafel sandwich, and the mushroom burger.
The service was terrible. I let the lovely lady, who sat us, know we had never been there before, but the gentleman who waited on us seemed more interested in his side tasks and his friends who stopped by. He brought coffee for my husband, but no creamers.. The food came out quite slow, and while my friend and I received our sandwiches, which was brought by another server, my husband was still waiting for his burger. When his burger arrived, the chili and cheese he ordered for his fries was missing, and it took an additional 10 minutes for it to arrive, and it was just the chili.
The server stopped by for a second and walked away. I had tried to get his attention, because I wanted a drink refill, but I was taken aback at his lack of concern or urgency to help us.
The other people working, who were actually quite polite, actually assisted us. After we finally had everything together, he kept repeatedly stopping by our table to check on us, using a weirdly condescending tone.
Honestly, if you want to check out the niche décor, eat slightly above average diner food, and pay more than you would at a Denny’s for a lackluster experience out in Sedona, then this diner is for you.