Ricky’s Family Restaurant

NOOOOOOOOO!!! i just heard about the closing. i was planning a trip next month with my kids to have some apple pancakes. my dad introduced me to it 40 years ago and i wanted to share the experience. sad day for me.

Sign on door states: Closed due pending sale of building for development. If sale does not go thru, will re– open.
Been wonderful place for the apple pancakes. Have been going there for 30+ years. Will be missed.
Glen

Good service. My food was great! I got the country fried steak and the apple pancake!
The country fried steak was good and full of flavor. The apple pancake was delicious! It wasn’t to sweet and had just the right amount of sweatiness.
My wife got the asada plate… It was her fault for getting it at a breakfast restaurant because it was not good. The meat was tough… So minus one star for that. They should just take it off the menu.
Staff was friendly. Water and drinks was refilled timely. I will definitely come back…

Great food & great customer service, server’s name was Desmond. Our food came out hot & quick, & we never went without refills. We will be back!

This restaurant was great! Definitely coming back in the near future.
It has an older 90’s style that they just never got to updating I guess but it makes the feel of the entire place better I think.
I came here with a few friends on a Saturday for a hungover breakfast (they dragged me out of the house!) and it was way better than I thought. I live about 2 miles away and haven’t even heard about this joint.
Well we got there and the older gentleman at the front was extremely friendly and courteous. He showed us to our table right away without any wait. Our waiter was also just as friendly and quick to bring us our coffee, which I desperately needed!
I ordered the San Diego Skillet, which was more than enough food for only $ 8.95. It comes with potatoes on the side and a skillet of bacon, sausage, onions, eggs, cheese and salsa. I extremely dislike onions and forgot to say no onions and there was a good amount in it so that was my fault.
Overall, this restaurant was phenomenal, friendly and great food! Recommend to everyone in the area or visiting.

I GOT FOOD POISONING HERE!!!
We had a large group and made reservations in advance and when we got there on time and it wasn’t busy, yet they didn’t put tables together for our large group. We did! And they looked at us like we were crazy!!!
It ended up taking an hour to get water… FREAKING WATER!!! and then took FOREVER to get our orders taken! They never gave us refills and on top of that we had to wait 2 hours to get our food. And 2 of our orders literally never came and last, but certainly not least, the effing cherry on top. I got food poisoning. What the literal F**k.

Standard issue diner fare that’s certainly filling. If you’re looking for the next «foodie» hotspot, this isn’t it. This is your usual burger joint, with the small town friendly air about it. I stop by on my way to work, and get breakfast to go, usually about once a week.
I usually go with the chorizo omelet, which is fluffy in texture and reasonably spicy tasting… as I said, it’s filling. The shredded potatoes, are dry and tasteless, a no go all around.
Their tuna melt was a disappointment however. No seasoning whatsover to the tuna, and it needed salt badly. The slice of cheese was as cold as the toasted bread.
Located right on Hotel Circle S (near Taylor St. exit), it is easy to miss amid the hotels, so you need to be on the look out for it if you’re in the area. Since there aren’t very many amenities in the hotel circle area anyway, this place might be a viable option if you’re not fussy and don’t want to travel far. Never a problem with seating (some may red flag that notion), and the waitstaff are always polite.
Parking is plentiful in the back, which is a misnomer because you will only see four spots at the front of the building.

We chose to go to Ricky’s this past weekend based on past experiences: cheap food with no wait. Boy, were we mistaken about the «no wait» part!
The restaurant was packed! We were lucky to find parking in back of the lot, but there weren’t a whole lot of spaces to choose from. Once we put our wait on the list — despite the number of people hanging out in the lobby — we were told it’d only be about a 10 – 15 minute wait.
I was dubious, but figured they knew their business. We were slightly stunned by how crazy the place was, but I guess that’s good for them. I’m sure keeping your family-​owned business running can’t be easy these days.
At any rate, we were shown to a table in less than ten minutes. Our waiter came out right away to fill our coffee cups and then scuttled off to tend to the other tables in his area.
The menu at Ricky’s isn’t exactly expansive, but at least they offer a good number of choices. They’re famous for their version of the apple pancake — and you can smell the cinnamon and spices on the air once you step into the dining room — but I didn’t want anything sweet.
I chose the Chicken Fried Steak (comes with toast, eggs and hash browns, which I requested to be crispy on both sides), and my husband ordered the San Diego Skillet (eggs cooked with meats and cheese, served with salsa and toast).
The food came out pretty quickly, considering how busy the restaurant was. I had expected to have to wait a bit for the food, which I would have been okay with, honestly.
My meal was okay. It didn’t blow me away — the steak wasn’t really hot when it got to me, even though we were right by the kitchen door. The eggs were over easy, though I had asked for over medium (and yes, there is a difference, though I can give a pass on that one — it seems not many places can cook the eggs to my specifications… who knew I was a picky egg eater?) and the hash browns were strange. They call them «country hash browns», which I guess explains away their look.
I know hash browns as skinny potato shreds, mushed together into a patty and cooked to a lovely golden brown on both sides (or, that’s how I like them). These were thicker shreds, and they weren’t a cohesive potato dish. They also weren’t crispy on both sides. Ah well, what can you do?
My husband seemed to love his dish, judging by the way he wolfed it down. I know he had had a hankering for a skillet breakfast of some kind (a la Le Peep, a breakfast joint no longer found in California), but I don’t know if this dish hit that spot.
Our server was friendly, though he did seem a bit scattered. I guess having a packed restaurant can do that to a person.
I wonder how long it’s been since they did a remodel of the dining room? They have these really old (retro) posters for Bud Dry and the like on their walls, which is amusing. The chairs and benches are all green vinyl, and there’s a lot of gold on surfaces. Still, it’s clean and they move you along quickly so you’re not left to starve while waiting for your food.

If you consider yourself a «foodie», «food buff» or «restaurant expert» stay the hell away because chances are you’re a person who’s disappointed if your food doesn’t come prepared with organic herbs, carefully plucked to preserve integrity, grown in charred barrels inspired by the chef’s tragic childhood experience of a forest fire.
Translation, if you’re pretentious, don’t eat here. This place is straight up diner food. No frills, no gimmicks-​just good, old fashioned American Diner food. The service is friendly, food comes quickly, and everything hits the spot. I have yet to try the apple pancake, but if caught a glimpse of one today-​it looked like heaven on a plate.

This place is THE BOMB for breakfast. My boyfriend and I went here before heading to Sea World. We both go omelets: I got the shrimp avocado and jack, added spinach, and he got the bacon and mushroom.
I figured id have a few shrimp in my omelet, but was very pleased when I saw my omelet was literally full of them! No skimping out at all!
The coffee is good, which is always a plus for diners, and the service was good. A nice clean diner.
I’d definitely come here again! :)

So delicious. Had the San Diego Skillet. Was not disappointed… plenty of cheese and delicious bacon. Corned beef hash could’ve been browned a little more.
Waitress was super nice and attentive (not overly attentive).

WOW!
We have been driving by this restaurant for years and never tried it so we decided to pop in for breakfast. We were greeted with a smile and seated immediately.
I was struck by how clean the restaurant looked and how open and bright it was. Especially because some older Diners can feel kind of yuck and be dark and not so updated. Ricky’s is awesome though.
Our waitress was very very nice and attentive, she brought our drinks out quickly and our food came so fast it was ridiculous! I was very hungry and we had our 10 month old baby with us so this was a huge plus. I ordered the pancake combo and asked for no meat and our waitress immediately offered me a substitute of hash browns. As a vegetarian this is cool because some restaurants don’t give you the meat but don’t offer anything in its place but still charge you the same.
The pancakes were the BEST pancakes I’ve ever had and gigantic! They were moist, fluffy, and tasty like actual Cake. My eggs were cooked perfectly and the hash browns were super delish. Hubby got a Broccoli omelette with Monterrey jack cheese, he enjoyed it and said it was awesome.
We will definitely be back to try the famous Apple pancakes!

Wonderful diner. It’s cute with décor. We seated right away, We had time to settle in, our waitress was fast with our coffee, and the cooks were quick with the food. We didn’t get the apple pancakes because of what the Unilocal people said that it was «okay.». My husband got the veggie omelette with the hash-​browns. The omelette was no big deal. Normal omelette foiled over on it’s self. it had broccoli, peppers, onions, and a little bit of cheese. That was good because my husband a little bit of a health nut.
My one year old and I had the french toast. I was looking forward to it because I saw it in here. It met my all explication. It had powered sugar and strawberries. It was fluffy rich and had just the right hint of vanilla. I ordered the french toast meal. It came with two eggs and your choose of bacon or sausage. I got the sausage.
Over all we had a good time. Kid friendly place.

Awesome club sandwich and the best Bloody Mary in town according to Loupa I.
This place is great, club sandwich was packed with bacon! (never a bad thing).
My folks are regulars here, the apple cinammon pancake is a little too sweet for one person, good to share with about four people though. Alvy was our server this morning and was very helpful and attentive.

Every time I’m in town, I come here for the apple pancakes. They are so delish!!! My appetizer to this delicious master piece is the avocado, shrimp & cheep omelette. Never disappointed when I stop here.

We live down the street and Ricky’s has become a Sunday morning norm for us.
The portions are good and it definitely has a diner feel to the place. Service has consistenly been good, they do become busy and can take a little longer to get to you, but being that it’s in a mostly touristy area, they will take care of you if they see you as a regular.
I have had the following:
Shrimp avacado omlette 4
Pork chops and eggs 4
Burgers 3+
the apple pancakes (enough for 2) more of desert in my opinion. 4
Take out is pretty painless and you get everything you need. Recommend you call ahead.
If your looking for something a little old school, give it a try.

September 25, 2012 Tuesday — breakfast 8:30 AM
2 adults
Atmosphere — 5 stars
Food — 5 stars
Service — 5 stars
Background — How can you avoid a restaurant with a sign saying «World Famous Apple Pancake», not me. We drove by this place several times during our stay so we had to stop in.
Atmosphere — The place is dead, one single customer while there. Very clean a little out dated but it was fine.
Food
Appetizer — No, it is breakfast time.
Main Course — I had to try that «World Famous Apple Pancake», well it is really a crazy item and not a pancake. Our waitress described is a soufflé, which did describe it better. She told me it would take 30 minutes to cook; I said it was fine; it was a lazy day in San Diego. I only took about 20 minutes plus. When she brought it to me you could see it was more a soufflé as it was slowly sinking in the center. Oh it was so yummy. It was like an apple pie and pancake had a baby. Did I say it was yummy! I should have only eaten half of it, the thing is huge. I was so stuffed when I was done. Now I thinking a scoop of vanilla ice cream would have been good on top of it.
Dessert — None
Service — She was very friendly and a sweet lady.
Future — I would eat it again.

Before Unilocaling for reviews, we decided to come here since it was next door to our hotel. Since I Unilocal everything before I enter, this place was no different. They’re known for their Apple Pancakes (which we didn’t even order) but after ready just a couple of reviews, apparently the Kardashians came here to eat.
There’s nothing fancy at all about Ricky’s. Just a typical, normal, diner with diner food. Service was friendly, waitress was always prompt when refilling my coffee. He got the french toast and I got the denver omelette.
As stated earlier, food was typical diner food. Better than Denny’s of course but unless I’m staying at a nearby hotel again (which I totally doubt, read my upcoming Comfort Inn review) I probably won’t be coming back.

I’m from SD and drove past Ricky’s on the 8 Freeway countless times and until recently when it was featured in a reality show episode … AHEM! (Kardashians) was that I finally got in here.
I woke up craving yummy waffles or french toast. Breakfast for lunch kinda day and and I ordered the SD best French toast, with eggs and sausage.
The creamy delicious hearty portion of eggs and sausage arrived first and later followed by the yummy sweet powdery french toast. served w a side of strawberry preserve and a scoop of whipped butter.
honestly no butter is needed, the piece melted in my mouth and tasted like a glazed donut. SO YUMMY! next time im trying the baked soufflé with takes about 28 minutes to make. the server suggested u call in and order prior to arriving.
My NEW breakfast spot.

Had the apple pancake and the bf had the chicken fried steak.
I don’t think I’ll order the apple pancake… ever again. I don’t even know why they call it a pancake because it just reminds me of eggs topped with apples and gobs of cinnamon and oil, with a wait of 20 minutes on the side… BLAH. The chicken fried steak was pretty tasty, possibly the best in San Diego, and this is coming from my Texas-​bred bf. Would I come back? Perhaps, but only to try something else on the menu.