Leo’s Place Diner

My third, and last, visit to Leo’s Place was this morning. Twice I have been before and twice I have endured mediocre food and indifferent service, bordering on rude. Today I went in, sat at the counter, and left after ten minutes of not even being acknowledged. No menu, no coffee, nothing. There were two line cooks and two waitresses (who seemed more intent on gossiping to each other behind their order slip pads). There were four empty counter stools and three empty tabletops – far from being «in the weeds» at a diner on a rainy Sunday morning. Sorry, Leo’s. I’ll be visiting Rox Diner in Newtonville for service with a smile and a much better menu.

Delicious… and great atmosphere. Highly recommend. Great lime rickey… very refreshing

The Service is AWFUL! The owner is rude! We asked for water! He brings one! Who DOES THAT?! When we asked for another one, He basically threw the water on the counter. Just rude!

Great place! Great variety of omelettes and breakfast sandwiches. Place is conveniently located on Main Street right across the street from the city hall. Service is quick and friendly, portions are good size. Will come back!

My Wife and I went to Leo’s Place for breakfast this morning. We sat at the bar and we were immediately impressed with the service and atmosphere. I had the 222 breakfast and my Wife had a bagel sandwich with lox. Awesome breakfast. Better than the pickle and josephs. It was nice to chat with the owners Rafi and Richie. They clearly take such pride in what they do. Just watch the little details when they cook behind the bar. Great stuff guys. We will be back to try lunch next time.

Simply the best. Leo’s is a Harvard Square classic, transported to Waltham after a decades-​long tenure of serving the best food in Cambridge. Visit often. Explore the menu. And despite your desire to keep this secret to yourself — share the love and tell your friends about Waltham’s finest fare.

Finally, a breakfast place worth writing about in Waltham! Since Pickle moved, it’s gone way downhill. Leo’s makes up for it and more. Good food, great atmosphere, old world charm (love the hat, Rafi!)
I love bruschetta, so I had the Tuscan Diva Omelette — and it did not disappoint. (Rafi served the food himself). Fresh ingredients and very tasty. And the bacon (which a lot of places skimp on) was excellent too.
Cleanliness is worth mentioning also: floors, tables, dishes and flatware — all of it met even my wife’s high standards.
Step out of Waltham and into the Old World. You’ll be glad you did.

Great clean restaurant… friendly atmosphere… food good… prices are reasonable and right in center of waltham

Sad times. Came in on a Sunday as a Plan B to other better local places that were closed or crowded. Friends, please don’t waste your time, money or good mood. Lots of waiting for what turned out to be tasteless eggs and really truly awful pancakes that couldn’t even be torn apart with a knife. No one came by to check on our empty coffees in the 30 minutes our sad breakfast took or even cared enough to explain the wait, especially when people that came in after us got served pretty much immediately. It seems like you either have to know a server or sit at the counter to have that kind of experience. Too bad as I work down the street and would love a convenient spot for breakfast or lunch. Never again.

Leo’s has become my hands-​down favorite breakfast spot. Never understood the draw to the other places where you wait outside in a line for rushed and cold service. Leo’s is friendly, accessible, and delicious!!! I love seeing the owner cooking, delivering meals and making sure everyone is happy with their orders. Sometimes we drive by in the evening and we see him in the restaurant, cleaning and preparing. This is the type of local business I love to support. Thank you, Leo’s, for choosing to come to Waltham!

Slow service despite it being a slow day when we went. At one point, we had to walk up to the counter space from our seats to ask for waters because our waitress was too busy reading her magazine. Average to mediocre food. My somewhat soggy home fries had too much seasoning. I’ve had much better home fries and omelettes before. Will not be returning.

Came here for brunch. Leo seems like a cool dude and has lived some type of life. You can see/​feel it in the ambiance & décor of the restaurant but I wasn’t impressed with the lamb kebab I had. Pretty mediocre, pretty dry. Wait staff wasn’t the most attentive either. They seemed busy… but not with their job. Ah well, ya win some you lose some.

Came here on a Sunday morn because In a pickle was full and bursting at the seams. So I figured to give this joint a chance… I’m afraid to say but never again. It’s hard to be objective when one has been to a place packed but still get the attention and the service of a slow day. I must admit I was starving so my level of tolerance is much smaller.
So I entered to half full setting… plenty of bar seats. Since it was just me then that’s where I sat. However no one even acknowledge my entrance because all the staff was busy. Then I sit at the counter for about 10mins… nada. Finally the man who appears to be the owner turns around from buttering a bunch of toast and says «what do U want?» Wow… good morning sir… coffee would be great.
To say the least this bkfst experience was bad. The staff looks miserable and the vibe is anti-​customer. The food however was good. I ordered el matador omelet. It claimed to have chorizo and it did but very hard to find. It was still tasty… I do remind you… I was starving so a piece of paper would have tasted fantastic.
Well this is more of a rant then a review… this place has potential but until then I will wait 20min to be seated at the pickle.

All hail the Armenians! As soon as I knew this place was run by people from my corner of the world, I had to check it out. Happily, the food and service were so excellent I have already recommended it to friends of all different ethnicities.
The location is perfect, across the street from a charming park and just a short walk from my brother’s house where we were staying. Also easily walkable from the train station if you happen to be coming from the city on the Fitchburg line. Inside, it’s bright and clean, decorated with photos from the years when it was a fixture on Harvard Square — apparently there are quite a few celebrities who share our enthusiasm for their deliciously fresh take on diner food.
Speaking of food: my husband had a cheesesteak omelette on a toasted sesame bagel, and I had a pastrami-​swiss omelette with sides of toast and potatoes. The eggs were fresh, the meat salty and spicy and the cheese perfectly melted — it was heaven! The potatoes were a slight misstep — they were underseasoned and tasted boiled rather than fried — but I couldn’t have finished them anyway, we were so full.
The real stunner, though, was what the menu calls a «fruit cup.» I always like something sweet with breakfast, but I can’t handle the sugar rush of french toast, so I ordered fruit because the side of ricotta cheese and honey sounded interesting. When it came, I actually gasped: it looked like a painting, a gorgeous tower of perfectly-​ripened fruit. There were sticks of apple and nectarine; slices of kiwi, cantaloupe, honeydew, orange and grapefruit; halves of fig and kumquat; fresh blackberries, cherries, blueberries, and pomegranate seeds. That’s just what I can remember off the top of my head; there were probably more! On the side was a small dish of ricotta cheese drizzled with the most fragrant honey; swirled together and spread on the fruit, it was more delicious than any dessert I can imagine, and far healthier. It absolutely made the meal, and whatever else you order, I urge you to end with this!
The coffee was hot and fresh and our server came by several times to refill it and check on us. She was friendly without hovering and made us feel very comfortable there. We will absolutely be back the next time we’re in Boston. Long Live Leo’s! Vive l’Armenie!

Decent food. Slow service. Affordable pricing. Came here in lieu of In a Pickle and their 40m wait. Creative menu options, more twists on French toast than Uma Thurman killing bills, but ultimately more fiction in the French toast than the pulp in the omelet. Stick with $ 10 American eggs over French toast to avoid feeling like les miserables.

I will start off with the best– great Americana omelet (steak and cheese) as the eggs were cooked perfectly! The food was very tasty. Wonderful selection of root beer and a terrific cup of coffee. I say if you have time and are patient, then head here for breakfast. If you are in a rush and inpatient when there are other things to do, stay away. The service was inefficient, the staff was disorganized, inattentive, and forgetful. No one was very friendly.

Food was excellent. Smoked salmon omelette and the trio steak and egg. Cute little place with big history. Although I had to google the history. There are walls of pictures signed by famous people but you don’t know why. An artist came in and painted the walls and chairs but I had to look all this up. The owner/​chef delivered our food to the table.
There was only one waitress for the whole place. While she did a good job it was just hard to grab her because she was so busy but the service wasn’t poor, just average.
But the food is memorable and a very affordable cost. The menu leaves you wanting to try absolutely everything they offer.

passing through town before heading out on the interstate on our roadtrip, we were hungry. i «nearby’d» us to find a diner. and so we were actually trying to get to wilson’s diner on main street — but there was construction clogging up the whole avenue and as we sat there debating how long we were willing to sit in traffic, i looked to my left and voila, leo’s place beckoned. so the hubby pulled a strategic u-​turn and we got curbside parking right in front. things were looking good and this worked out really well for us.
we were warmly greeted, invited to sit where we’d like, and enjoyed the cool décor (obviously leo knows some peeps in the music biz). leo must also have a thing about root beer because there is a big beautiful cooler filled with every brand of root beer you can imagine.
service was super friendly and attentive. we were in the mood for breakfast and the variety of breakfast items was impressive. holy cow, if you can’t find the breakfast item you want at leo’s,…you must be looking on the lunch page (which is also impressive!).
i went with maestro’s morning symphony — signature pancakes «loaded with fresh berries and fruit», the menu said. and oh wow, leo’s not kidding — and they do not skimp at all! i was delighted when my plate arrived with three beautifully golden buttermilk pancakes adorned with fresh bananas, strawberries, pomegranate, raspberries, blueberries, blackberries, a grapefruit wedge and an orange wedge. there was so much fresh fruit on my plate that it almost made me feel healthy as i devoured the buttermilk pancakes. it was a symphony in my mouth.
i really enjoyed everything about leo’s place. give them a try and i bet you will too.

As we searched for something to eat before our long car ride to Connecticut, we decided that we’d look in Waltham for somewhere local instead of eating at a chain along the highway.
The reviews of Leo’s were mixed, but time was of the essence and it was right there, so we ventured in. Sure glad we did.
We had no hint of poor service, quite the opposite. Upon entering, we were warmly greeted immediately, and once seated service was prompt and charming.
Food was exactly what we needed — I had standard breakfast fare of fried eggs, bacon, homefries and toast. Heck, that is what diners are for, right? Well, they were just perfect and hit the spot. My wife ordered pancakes with fruit, and was thrilled to find that not only was there a good variety of fruit, it was all obviously fresh. Raspberries, blueberries, pomegranates, oranges, strawberries, I can’t even remember them all.
We absolutely loved Leo’s and are baffled by the poor reviews prior to ours. I suppose it goes to show that you should read all reviews — including this one — with a grain of salt. It would be a shame if we missed Leo’s because of the prior dings.
Nice job, Leo’s, we’ll be back!

Went into Leo’s twice last weekend and had great meals each time!
I almost was hesitant to post a review because this is such a great new breakfast place in Waltham that a lot of people do not know about. Leo’s has been in Cambridge for years, but due to a leasing issue they came over to Waltham.
The menu allows you to order breakfast all day, and the choices are endless. My favorite breakfast has to be the «222» where you get two eggs, two pancakes and two bacon or sausage links. The omelettes are large and fresh, I got the Shroomster and loved it, the gouda cheese made it so rich and creamy.
The quality of the food and the care they put into making it will keep me coming back for more.
We still have not tried lunch here, but the sandwiches they were making for some to-​go orders looked great!
The space is very small, but right now you should not have an issue being seating on a Saturday or Sunday with no wait. This is not because the food or location is bad, it is just that no one knows about this place! In a Pickle is my #1 breakfast place in Waltham, but Leo’s is starting to steal my heart.
If you want an excellent Breakfast/​Lunch, served fresh and hot go to Leo’s!
Parking is easy! Park on Main st or go into the public parking lot off of Common st. Parking on Common st is about $.25 for thirty minutes.