EJ’s Luncheonette

Great place. Great ambience. Awesome waitress Sarah. The good was very good reasonably priced. Date night with the babe’s.

I stopped in here on Saturday with a friend because we were craving milkshakes! The staff was very enthusiastic and made us feel welcome. They took our milkshake order and let us sit at the bar to wait for them. They were ready really fast and pretty good! No complaints here, but I haven’t tried their real food yet.

The food is very tasty but the portions are small. This place is usually bustling but the wait was short and the service was solid. The crusty french toast is a must! Yum!

Went in for breakfast with a friend earlier this month, Although the waiters are nice and food is alright, the manager was a complete jerk. After telling us that they only take cash after we had finished, he began to rudely mock us for not seeing the teeny tiny sign in the window about cash only. He then told us to go downstairs and use the ATM, which stole my money as well. When I told him this he rudely dismissed me and told me it was my problem even after the customers behind me had the same issue. Needless to say, I won’t be back. Ever.

I want to like this place more, but the truth is my best friend normally drags me here because she likes their coffee. Cash only, typical diner food. Fairly large menu and food is cooked well but the service is the worst. Impossible to get coffee refills, they get really annoyed if you ask to hold or add ingredients, they hand you the check immediately after the food and start cleaning up while you’re eating. The upside? They do have good coffee.

If you are going to charge me an additional fee for a tomato with my burger (which should quite frankly be included) — don’t give me a mealy inedible one. Shameful.

I had breakfast here the other morning with my family and was very disappointed with the service, or should I say the lack thereof. When the waiter finally decided come to our table to take our order, he was brusque and before we were even able to complete the order he just decided to walk off. I had to then get up and follow him until he stopped and I was able to get his attention to finish placing our order. I would have left the restaurant right then, but my daughters were hungry and we had already wasted time waiting to be seated. The food was nothing special, and oh after we paid and were about to leave I noticed that the same rude waiter had shortchanged me $ 10 (the restaurant only takes cash). When I brought this to his attention, he was neither surprised, nor apologetic. Needless to say there are plenty of other diners in NY and I won’t be returning here anytime soon.

Best omelette in the neighborhood! Spinach and feta omelette perfectly cooked. They have very goods salads as well. Best thing is if you opt out of fries they will sub saad instead or fruit. Always great service, only thing that sucks is only cash!

This is kind of a step higher than a regular diner. Portions are super huge — I’m referring to their jumbo flapjacks. But they sort of lack in flavor. Like something’s missing. Oh, and it’s cash only.

Super solid luncheonette on the UES.
Sat at the bar, ordered a cheeseburger and got a hot, juicy (kinda greasy) burger in less than 10 minutes. Cooked right, fresh veggies and the option to pay $ 3 more for a grass-​fed, antibiotic free burger made me happy.
Pretty quiet for a 1 PM on a Monday, but it’s always nice to find a sliver of quiet in the city, right? I’d come back, their blue plate specials looked pretty killer.

EJ’s is a much better than average diner for those that want a solid brunch on the UES. Similarly to all diners, there are a million choices, but the omelettes are a solid bet to be delicious.
Beware that there is usually a wait during the busy brunch times Saturday and Sunday. It’s worth a short wait.

An average diner if you’re just looking for a quick bite. They attempt to be like an old school diner, but the menu does not really go with it. This place is CASH ONLY. I’ve only eaten here because I used to work nearby and it was a quick place for some diner food. The food is a just average, and I did not appreciate the service here. Prepare to get ignored and rushed out of the restaurant. Seating can also be a little tight along the walls, I have sometimes bumped into people while trying to get in my seat. You will not really get your money’s worth here. I do like their grandma’s chicken noodle soup though.

Affordable, family-​friendly, and adult beverages! Quality, tasty portions in a fun retro environment. Feels like a safe haven from tourists, but this is an easy walk from Central Park. There is a Kids’ Menu, a rarity in New York. One thing you need to know is that EJ’s is CASH ONLY.
My daughter and I had burgers. My sister got the salmon sandwich, a little spicy, but good nonetheless. Several people in our party got breakfast, which is served all day.

Cash only diner popular with the stroller moms during the weekend. Nothing memorable about the pancakes or eggs I ordered. Decent prices at least.

A run-​of-​the-​mill diner which is an option if you don’t want to splurge in the many high-​priced eateries of the upper east side.
The décor is rather confusing. They’re trying to pull off the classic diner aesthetic, but try to mix it with a «health food» motif. Can eat outside, in a booth inside by the grill or in between with a sun room type seating to the side.
First up is the chicken Caesar salad. Easy dish, but easy to mess up. I’m happy to say that their Caesar dressing wasn’t like the cheap, heavy variety and the Parmesan was an enhancement more than a salty cover. The croutons were sweet, tying it all together. A good start.
Next, I sampled the chicken salad sandwich. I was particularly fond of the tarragon, but felt it could have done with a little less of it. Chicken was cooked soft and moist, no need for the liquids of other chicken salads.
Ordered the simple cheeseburger with mushrooms and swiss instead. Meat was cooked just right per my medium rare request, but it just doesn’t distinguish itself from the other burger joints close by.
Lastly, skip the fruit smoothie. It was horrid. A watery consistency with little fruit flavor but a very conspicuous fake milk taste. There was a slight medicinal tang to it as well. $ 7 for that is criminal.

Stopped in for lunch. Decent chicken tortilla soup with avocado. Great flavors. Decent service.
Cash only –_–

NOTE: Cash only!
I’m only giving this place 3 stars instead of 2 because they were willing to take back my overripe fruit and not charge me for it. Otherwise, this place was a solid 2. It’s your typical diner (albeit reasonably priced especially for the UES).
We were seated right away at a cramped table — I had to ask the gentleman at the table over to move in just to sit down. The menu wasn’t very pescetarian friendly — mostly meat sandwiches and salads with the occasional egg dish. I ended up getting the lobster cake Benedict, which was good but too fattening for my liking. My mom got the Asian salmon salad which was delicious.
The biggest problem lay in my side of FRESH strawberries and bananas, which were browning and overripe. I made the waiter take them back and luckily he didn’t charge me, but wtf were they thinking even sending those out? Disgusting. I wouldn’t order fruit here.
If you don’t care about eating healthy or the quality of your food, I’m sure this place is fine.

I’ve passed this joint numerous times on weekends & witnessed long lines out the door around brunch time. I’ve also heard good things.
So I took some people here for an informal late breakfast meeting.
Oh. My. God.
The food wasn’t memorable, but somewhat edible. The service, however, was HORRENDOUS. The waitstaff basically ignored us, then rushed us & its not like anyone was waiting for a table. There were plenty available.
They couldn’t remember who ordered what (there were 3 people & 2 ordered the same exact thing) & then literally threw our plates at us — slammed them on the table.
We were perfectly friendly patrons. We didn’t complain, have an attitude or anything — despite the one we clearly got.
One of the people I was with was taken aback by this & said «wow — they are pretty aggressive here».
$ 60 for 2 crappy omelettes, a bowl of fruit, 2 OJ’s & a coffee. Really? I’m used to NYC prices & honestly wouldn’t have cared about the money if they were pleasant… Or honest.
I gave them my Amex & they said «we take cash only. ATM downstairs».
Now, I know that’s a load of BS because you can order from them on Seamless with a credit card. So, not only do you have bad service & subpar food, you also have a restaurant lying to avoid paying taxes.
I had exactly $ 59.00 on me. So, I went downstairs to the ATM & paid another $ 3.00 fee to buy my own money as I was unwilling to call them out for lying to me in front of my guests.
I left an 18% tip because I’m a nice person, who generally over tips for good service, but I can’t say they deserved it at all.
I won’t be giving them my business again.
Neither will the guests they embarrassed me in front of.

E-​Scale: ⁶⁄₁₀
I occasionally stop here for coffee. It is obviously more expensive than bodega or street coffee and not necessarily better. Food is mediocre and over priced. Good selection of breakfast and lunch items, very typical diner food. Overall, if you are desperate this place is fine. If you have time, walk an extra block or two to first ave and second and save yourself some money.

I love love love their salads… EJs Luncheonette is one of my favorite lunch locations on the UES. And they serve breakfast all day long, Everything on the menu is tasty, it’s inexpensive, and the service is great. I’ve tried numerous items off their menu and I must admit, it’s all very good. No wonder it’s nearly impossible to get a seat here during the afternoon. Place is always packed. I really like the old school feel of the place, with their booths and the milkshake bar. Gives you a true 60s feel just stepping in there. Service is always very friendly and attentive, and they always have smiles on. I’m not very fond of their outdoor seating area, which is usually pretty frigid with the massive air conditioner overhead. I took away a star for their downstairs bathroom, which could be kept a lot better.
Foods to try: Any salad! Cobb, Granny Smith, Asian Salmon. Nice large Portions
–Lentil soup and French onion are both on point ¹⁰⁄₁₀. French onion is French restaurant quality. Yummmmmy topped with lots of melted cheesey goodness.
Oh and before I forget to mention… It’s a Cash only establishment. So bring that Moola