Mae's Phinney Ridge Cafe - (206) 792-7912

• Breakfast Shakes & Malts
• Homemade Cinnamon Rolls
• Home-Cooked Comfort Food

This is my family's favorite place to go for breakfast. I don't know what some of the other reviewers have been smoking, but this place is very family friendly. It's has a relaxed atmosphere, so if your kids make some noise it's no big deal. Also if your kids make a a mess, the staff takes care of it without giving you the evil eye. It has a very funky and eclectic decor which is also fun for the kiddies. But there are also many other reaons to "graze" at Mae's. The breakfast menu has a great selection of omletes. I my favorite is the Smoking Joes with mushrooms. The plates are big, so you might want to consider a "baby" sized omlete, which is a little bit cheaper. Also, the Cinnamon Rolls are delicious. I am always tempted. The staff is very friendly, many of them have been there for years and know their jobs. I see that someone complained about nose rings on the waitstaff. ??? I think they need to get out a bit more and try and break out of the 1950's bubble they seem to be living in. I don't know what that has to do with the food or the service. My one complaint would be the espresso drinks. At this place I stick to the drip. On a nice week-end morning the wait can get a little long, especially if you don't arrive until 10am. If this is a problem for you there is a place down the street which always has plenty of open tables. But I would rather wait for a table at Mae's that get a seat at a half empty place.

I've been a few times. The food is passable, but no great shakes. I give it one star because I brought my toddler last time, and I have NEVER been treated so poorly at a restaurant, and clearly because of having a child with us. Now, I waited tables for 10 years. I am keenly aware of things that customers can do to irritate staff. My son was NOT misbehaving. We actually never even got seated (despite the nearly empty restaurant early on a weekday morning). The waitstaff was incredibly rude, audibly made snide remarks into the kitchen, and we never could find out if a hostess was even on duty. We left after milling around for about 5 minutes waiting for someone to seat us. I would not call this a family friendly place, and we will not be going back. Boo to the Moo!

I went here for the first time after hearing great things. I was impressed with the grtis and the friendly service. Great place for my kid, who loved looking at all the cows on the wall.

Mediocre food, indifferent service; that sums up this restaurant. Because it is walking distance from my home, I keep trying to make it work - but botched orders, mysteriously long wait times (lot's of empty tables and staff but no one to check on waiting customers), indifferently prepared food (burned bacon, undercooked pancakes, hard cold biscuits and potato dishes that consist mainly of green peppers and little else) have left me with no alternative but to drive someone where else if I want breakfast out. The big sign on the front door says, "Open 7 to 3 Daily". But, I've been turned away on several occasions with various excuses, (at 2pm - "the kitchen is closed", at 7:15am - "I know we should be open, but we are not.") Maybe Mae is tired, right now the restaurant seems to be coasting on a reputation built long ago. First-timers may be charmed by the kitchy quirkiness of the decor, but food is why you would return again and again to a restaurant like this one, and the food preparation is inconsistent, at best. Try it if you dare, but expect to be disappointed by the wait time, lack of customer service (it takes a long time to find someone to either seat you or take your money when you are done) and the surprise of digging into that huge plate of food only to find that it is cold, or poorly prepared.

Forget about any diet you may be on...just eat and enjoy...or share with a friend. The portions are more than generous and so good you will want to clean your plate. We were looking for a restaurant that would accommodate 14 of us for a late breakfast on Sunday afternoon to celebrate 3 family birthdays. We were not having any success, as that seems to be a very busy day for restaurants of this type and then...MAE'S PHINNEY RIDGE CAFE came to the rescue. We called and the owner said, "sure, come on in." When we arrived the place was packed, but as promised, we had tables set up for all 14 of us in the very fun "Moo Room." Every one in our party raved about the food, everything from the traditional Denver omelette to the trout and grits. Our birthday folks got free cinnamon rolls with a candle and a happy birthday song. The cinnamon rolls are decadent and I could write a whole separate review just for them. Our wait person, Suzanne, was excellent. She remembered all the birthday people's names and our coffee cups were never empty. I highly recommend Mae's Phinney Ridge Cafe for good food, good service and the informal fun relaxed atmosphere.