The State Diner

I would give it 2.5 stars if I could, friendly and quick service but the food really wasn’t that good. I definitely prefer Lincoln St Diner.

I LOVE this place! Everything, on multiple occasions, has been delicious. Buffalo chicken wrap with blue cheese is fantastic. Fries with provolone and gravy/​chili are a must. Burgers are tasty, especially with a milkshake. And breakfast??? Forget about it! It’s SO delicious, and crazy good. Definitely come here for great, satisying, filling food.

Open for breakfast Easter Sunday, most everything else closed. Good food, decent service, old school diner. Street parking slightly challenging.

I visited the State Diner with friends during a weekend trip to Cornell. I ordered the French Toast and Chocolate Milk as my drink. The service was fine however when the food came out I was very disappointed with the quality of my french toast. I was expecting challah bread to be used however their version of French Toast was three small pieces of potato bread dipped in French Toast mix. For $ 7 this was unacceptable and not a quality breakfast.
To make matters worse when we got the check I was charged $ 3.50 for the chocolate milk when it clearly said $ 2.50 on the menu. When I brought this issue up to the waitress she gave me a lame excuse that what I had received was a «large» chocolate milk when I was never given the option of small or large and most definitely didn’t ask for it.
In summary this diner is overpriced, terrible food and a terrible atmosphere. Stay away!

went here with my owner, friendly service but shitty atmosphere subpar salad and bboring droll human-​ness diid not care for it and i felt unwelcomed

Pros: The servers all seem to be very nice. Very attentive in refilling coffee and water.
Cons: For one undercooked, soggy waffle, two eggs, three slices of very thin bacon, and three slices of what was more like warm bread than toast slathered with butter it was over $ 17. It wouldn’t be worth $ 17 for that amount of food if it were excellent, and it wasn’t close.
I believe the waffle mix is from a premixed batter. That means the only thing that needs to be done besides pouring it in the waffle iron is leaving it in there for long enough. This is a task untrained people manage to handle at continental breakfasts across this nation everyday with minimal supervision, yet the staff at a restaurant could not.
For the price it isn’t worth finding out how they do with more complex items on the menu.

It was a busy day when I came in, the servers were running around and I was on my work break. I asked for a BLT, and once my BLT arrived I took a bite out of it and there was NO TOMATO. Such a bummer, most diners are disappearing around Ithaca. I just wish there were better ones

We weren’t sure what to eat tonight (burgers? pizza? evening breakfast?). But it didn’t leave me frustrated because it gave us the chance to finally try The State Diner.
I’m not sure how things are when this place is poppin’, but the sodas we ordered shortly after sitting down were almost immediately brought to our table. When I asked about the vegetarian chili option for chili cheese fries, I was offered a sample to see whether or not I’d like it (which I did — especially the bits of sweet potato — but since I always eat like that, I thought I’d «go crazy» with a lacto-​ovo plate and toast made of processed white bread.). The food was quick to order and made to our liking; my cheese omelette’s eggs were dry, and my son’s burger was very well done and topped with fresh veggies. I even spotted two Nutella packets in the basket of jam for my toast. Score.
But hinting at the service above isn’t enough. Our waitress, Kim, was attentive and upbeat. Her co-​worker at the cashier served up just enough small talk while I paid our bill. And the cook turned around from his grill just to say «hi». Good people.
This was our first visit, and I’m not sure when I’ll be back. But I’m looking forward to more so I can justify raising my rating from three to four stars.
…Okay, I’m back to make edits and can’t save this review without clicking the fourth star despite that being my first visit. The food was fresh, so it filled us up without forming a brick in our stomachs; and the service rivaled that which you’d find in a more upscale restaurant. I’m a fan! :)

Not bad overall… if your a big guy such as myself the booths and stools are a tight fit.

I loved this place. It is what it is, but a staple in Ithaca.

We come here every time we visit my brother at Cornell and it’s always fast and delicious. This time we had the pleasure of sitting at the counter and, let me say, these grill guys run a tight ship! It was fun watching them work together, and seeing how they make the home fries so delicious (the secret is they leave the on the grill in a huge heap forever and it makes them amazing)!

This is a fine diner if you are really craving some traditional diner food but this is not the place to go if you are looking for a nice breakfast/​brunch. My boyfriend and I came here today for lunch and ordered a cup of their award winning chili to start and then a BLT for me, a turkey sandwich for him and a side of fries to share. The chili was pretty good… It wasn’t the best chili I had ever had or anything but it was definitely a good cup of chili. It was good that we had that to start though because it took a half hour for our sandwiches to come out after that (which is crazy for a diner). When the food finally came out, I was a little disappointed — they REALLY skimped on the bacon on my BLT like there was a piece and a half on each side. It was still a good BLT but darn I wish there was more bacon! The fries were really good but they came straight from the fryer to our plate so they were sitting in a bit of grease. But whateva! The fries were perfectly crispy (possibly the best part of the meal?) My boyfriend liked his turkey sandwich and had no complaints.
UPDATE: we returned and the service was much quicker during lunch. The chicken and rice soup was good but a little too salty. Definitely a fine place to go for traditional diner food and also a good fast, cheap option. Will have to return and try breakfast for a more complete review.

The omelette I ordered was more like a fried egg on both sides with too many Swiss cheese slices semi melted in between. It was not at all fluffy and light.

Throwback. Old School. Great diner. Went to try Sunset Grill, but came across State Diner. Food was good, but Toni, our waitress, was fantastic; maybe the best thing about State Diner. Also, they played great tunes.
Must be packed when students are back.
Solid and fun place!

Very fast, very friendly service. Vegetarian chili was delicious & spicy! Fish fry on Fridays.
Cool booths with old-​fashioned fold up seats & chrome coatracks. Inside is shiny trolley-​car retro styled.

I was in a right state when I ate here. A state of shock, a state of panic, a new york state of mind, call it what you want to.
It was after a concert in Ithaca and I was with a female friend. We sought out a place to eat, and after being unimpressed by Shortstop, we ventured here for a late night sit down just before closing.
We shared a meal because we’d already eaten. Ham Dinner, or something thereabouts. It was perfectly pleasing, hot, juicy, tasted homemade. It wasn’t the best food we’d ever had, but it also wasn’t the worst and it hit the spot.
The service was particularly bad and unfriendly and left a bad taste in our mouths, whereas the food did not. Had we received more friendly service, I’m sure I could have added an extra star. I do like the food here though.

Piece of History, renovated to meet todays needs.
Great spot, best Diner we have ever been to.
Service on point, courtesy and professional.
Thanks Stavropoulos Family.

Been here on two occasions, once for a western omelet and the 2^nd time I had the liver and onions.
Pros:
–good sized breakfast for a reasonable price
–Nutella is an option put out on the table
–open 24 hours
–unpretentious and helpful waitstaff
–let me order a dinner entrée at 10 AM in the morning
Cons:
–cold (wasn’t heated well)
–front booths were uncomfortable (I had to make my coat into a pillow for my back because there only is a cushion for the top of your back, so you sat kinda bunched.)
I’d go here again.

After riding a bus for five hours and arriving in Ithaca at an ungodly hour, I was super hungry and Unilocal showed me this was the only sit-​down option available.
The interior was warm and bright and just like a traditional mom and pop diner. It was like taking a step back in time, and quaint.
The waitress, a college student, was remarkably nice and engaged my party in small talk and seemed genuinely interested in learning more about us and our trip.
The best part was how surprisingly delicious the breakfast was. With only three stars on Unilocal,I was expecting just to satisfy my hunger, but nothing to actually taste any good. The food arrived quickly and far surpassed IHOP, Denny’s, and any other diner I had tried in San Diego, California. The food was very flavorful, and I especially like the the rye toast with butter — not soggy at all.
As another reviewer said, this is not farm-​to-​table cuisine. It’s conventional food, but done right.
If I go to Ithaca again I will return to State Diner for breakfast.

As Matt H. writes, this place serves its purpose. I’m going to give it 4 stars because I’m comparing it against what the ideal for a diner should be.
All in all, the service is fast and no-​nonsense, and the food is reasonably well-​prepared for what it is. I’ve been in Ithaca for almost a year and have been consistently frustrated by trying to figure out where to get a good, cheap breakfast. It seems that State Diner may be the place.
The pancakes and omelettes are good, and the hash is OK. Meats are cooked well without being burned, toast is served soggy with butter.
It’s probably a notch above something like Denny’s and IHOP, faster and with more local flavor.