Olympic Cafe – House of Breakfast

This my 4^th time coming here and before they change the chef the pancakes were delicious and everything else but now the flavor is not that same anymore

Breakfast was delicious… The waitress is very courteous. The menu is a little limited but the service is amazing… We had a big breakfast for $ 20

the lady touched the food with her bare hands after she just took money from someone… literally just saw her pat down the hash browns with her bare hands. gross…
for the wait time, poor customer service, and sanitary measures that they take. will not be returning.
if only I could give them negative stars.

Really want to like this place since it is so close to our house and they have great prices… but unfortunately the service is consistently pretty bad. The server has a consistent flat poor attitude, every time we go it’s like pulling teeth to get water, you have to ask multiple times and at times we have sat through a whole meal without ever receiving the water we asked for. The food is good and the cook works very hard but the front house staff needs an adjustment. Won’t be going back.

Since I live so close and do my laundry sometimes next door I come here fairly often. I have always loved the atmosphere of a old country style cooking. The food and people here are great. I bring my friends and continue to recommend it to everyone !

That old diner feel. Classic breakfast choices with some Asian options like rice or spam. Great price, good coffee. Super small place. Came on a weekday. Will be back

The breakfast was excellent. Pancakes are delicious and they have a decent variety if meat options to compliment your eggs and pancakes.
Also they have rice! I love rice with eggs and bacon or spam!
Now the only complaint I really have– Isn’t the appearance of the place, which if I didn’t know better, would deter me from walking in…(but hole in the wall places can have some of the best food!)
I also didn’t even mind that they put all my togo orders on styrofoam plates instead of a box.
What disturbed me– was that as soon as a juicy, sizzling, hot sausage comes off the fryer– it is immediately placed on the styrofoam plate and guess what happens? The sausage melts the foam and the foam gets in my sausage. I took a picture and posted it in here for u guys. That can’t be good to ingest.
Eat there or request a box. Worth the trip. Food is delish!!!

One hour of wait just to eat breakfast is outrageous! This place wasn’t even busy at all. The orders were backed up due to the take outs and no one seemed to care for the hungry customers waiting for their food.
Im guessing the owner probably doesn’t care or has no idea what good service is. Please avoid and go somewhere else for better food and hospitality.

Never going back again. Waited for an hour… They are SUPER slow. If you are hungry, don’t go here.

It’s annoying to visit a place once a month and to get inconsistent service. Instead of dining in, I decided to try the take out window. I placed my order and started to read up on some of the more recent Unilocal reviews and I experienced the same poor service that everyone was describing.
I get that Olympic Café has been around for a while and they give their older patrons a little more preference, but it’s just obnoxious to dismiss everyone else. When I got there, only one order was before me at the take-​out line, which he got 5 minutes after I got there. In total, it took me 40 minutes to get fried rice and an order of pancakes, eggs and bacon. REALLY?
Also, I got there and there were two families of 2 waiting for a table with some open seats at the counter. The main server said that the seats are reserved. I thought that there are no reservations? Once the exclusive couple arrived, they even got their food before my take-​out!
I kept an eye out on the order window and noticed that my plate of pancakes were sitting by the window waiting for the fried rice order. By the time I got home, the pancakes were soggy. The fried rice was awful too! The rice was too soft and soggy, and it had no flavor. I’m hesitant to return.

Really old school diner with great food! Olympic Café is that diner that is a hole-​in-​the-​wall to the fullest extent. So much so that most people would probably pull into the parking lot and then reverse right back out and leave. For the brave soles that dare to exit their vehicles, you would probably walk into the doorway, have a looksie, then act as if you forgot your wallet and leave. Then there are the remaining few who will overlook it all and give the food a shot. And these are the ones who will be pleasantly surprised and glad that they stayed.
I believe this diner is 40+ years old and it shows, but please don’t let that deter you. The pancakes are the bomb! You’ll see the cook actually making the batter in a 5 gallon bucket in front of you. Good stuff. I’m originally from Hawaii so I love the fact that they serve Portugese sausage and they’re not stingy with the portion. You get 5 thick a$$ pieces with 2 eggs and rice for $ 8. The Denver omelette is pretty darn good and comes with a huge portion of hash browns and toast for $ 6.75.
The only negative I can say about the place is that there’s only 6 seats at the counter and 4 tables so if you have bad timing, there may be a long wait. Also, everything is made to order by one cook so wait time on the food is pretty long. If you can get past these, give it a shot. Great old school feel and good food.

EaterLA… I shake my fist at you!
EaterLA published a list of cheap breakfast eats in L.A. recently and this place was on the list. I decided to check it out because I like to take risks that way and try some places that could potentially be diamonds in the rough. However, after the last few experiences I’ve had with hole-​in-​the-​walls, I may have to rethink that for the future.
They are located in K-​town in a very run down corner strip mall. I was fortunate there was a parking spot available otherwise it would have been street parking and probably a short hike to the restaurant.
I wasn’t expecting much as I’ve already read about how much of a hole-​in-​the-​wall place this was. The inside was very plain and uninspiring. There’s a counter that seats 6 – 7 people, two small tables for two and 3 booths that seat 4.
I sat at the counter and the lady serving barely acknowledged me and didn’t really say a word. The menus are on the counter so I perused through it and it looked like the prices had gone up a bit even since last April where I saw a picture posted of the menu on Unilocal.
I had my heart set on pancakes and the breakfast special they have came with an egg, 3 pancakes and a choice of protein. I opted for the pricier plate for $ 6.85 that came with the Portuguese Sausage because I really like this sausage.
Strange she didn’t even ask me if I wanted anything to drink and after waiting a bit, I finally asked her for a glass of water.
My pancakes came out first and they looked decent. Unfortunately, when I bit into them they weren’t as fluffy as a few reviewers touted them to be. They were definitely undercooked because they were soggy and anything but fluffy. The syrup was the cheap grossly sweet high fructrose corn syrup kind and the taste was distinctive since I’m so used to having maple syrup. I didn’t really enjoy the pancakes at all but I finished them. While eating, the waitress plopped down a plate of the egg and sausages. The sausages were not the Portuguese Sausages that I thought they would be. I don’t know why but I was expecting sweeter sausages like the kind I’ve had at Hawaiian places. These seemed like they were sliced from a large sausage link you buy at the grocery store and were very, very salty. I could still taste the salt or maybe it’s the MSG in the sausage which I can still taste even as I write this review. Whatever it is, yuck. These also had pieces of cartilage which I didn’t quite appreciate at all having to spit them out.
After this disappointing meal, I probably would not come back. I can see where if I lived close by and if it were walking distance and I wanted a quick, cheap meal then yeah, I’d come back but since that’s not the case, no thanks.
Maybe I ordered the wrong plate but lots of reviewers swore by the Portuguese Sausage and pancakes plate. Perhaps I should have ordered an omelet or something, not sure. I hate to write a bad review because I realize they’re working hard and had been around a while but if you read the same Eater LA article and are thinking about dining here, I might reconsider because I don’t think it’s really worth it and I’d like to save you the hassle and potential disappointment.
You’re welcome.

Do you Love Pancakes ???
If so, that’s all you need to know !
They have the best pancakes I’ve ever had …
I’ve recently relocated to Houston but I’m always so excited to come back to my town for some pancakes and of course to see my family :)
Also it’s such a cute lil mom and pop diner, me and my family have been coming here since I was child.

I hate leaving bad reviews but if I could leave just half a star I would.
This place was terrible the customer service is ⁰⁄₁₀ no one asked if we need help when we first walked in and the waited more then an hour for eggs n bacon. I would only recommend this place if u had all day to wait for burn bacon n over cooked eggs and if you like being treated like shit. Also this place is dirty I wonder when was the last time they mopped.

This place sucked. I came here with a friend in the morning for breakfast at 9 on Saturday. I normally like small cafes, we waited for 15 minutes. We sat and ordered, but our food took 40 minutes to be served. We waited so long and there was another party of 4, they got so upset and left. Food was cheap, but the wait was too long.
They did a lot of to go orders, so maybe that was better.
Small parking lot.
CASH ONLY

Simple review: long wait outside for seat; long wait inside for food; food that I could have cooked better, faster…
But it’s entertaining to see 2 line cooks struggle with simple eggs, bacon, hash browns etc when clearly no one of the patrons was served food for almost 1hr.
Total time spent at this location was 2 hours… for… wait for it… «the breakfast special» which is 3 pancakes, 1 egg any style and 2 strips of bacon.
Supposedly the place has been around for 40 years and I can’t really understand why.
Anyways, won’t be trying it again. Btw, the bathroom is bad. Toilet wastes huge amounts of water, you are not supposed to put in your TP and thusly everyone puts it in the trash can and there’s no towels to dry your hands after you wash them… I should have know this before I ate there. Can’t really explain why this place has an A as health rating.

I’ve been to a lot of pancake house’s, and they rank at the top. It’s a small hole in the wall restaurant, with a family feel. You might have to wait for a seat, but it’s well worth it. For what you get, it’s inexpensive. It may need to be redecorated, but to keep the prices down, I don’t mind at all. Parking it’s a little rough sometimes though.
They also have really good fried rice, teriyaki chicken, and good daily specials. Don’t forget to bring cash. No credit, cash is king.

no wait at 10:45am on sunday. Place was packed except for 1 booth, so we got lucky. By 11:05am there were 12 people outside waiting. I’ve lived in this area for 13 years and never heard of this place.
I’ve been to the liquor store next door a few times. they sell cigars. this place closes early. Gives me a reason to come back to Olympic Blvd. In the early 90s, this area was an open air drug market with street dealers selling mota…

This is, by far, my favorite kind of place to find near my home, for breakfast. I love small, hole-​in-​the-​wall, family-​owned places with great food, to support and patronize.
Linda, the owner, took over running the restaurant from her dad, who operated it for many years. It has 6 seats at the counter, 2 booths that seat 4, and 2 tables that seat 2. As you can imagine, if you come on the weekend, it’s going to be a wait unless you are there when the doors open (7am on Saturday, 8am on Sunday). By 8am on Sundays, there are enough people waiting outside to fill the place instantly and leave more people waiting.
I eat here at least twice a week, and find the food consistently good, with some things better than others, and the prices very reasonable.
Some of my favorite things include the pancakes, which are a recipe that Linda’s dad came up with many years ago. They’ve got a better flavor than almost any pancake I’ve ever had, as well as being fluffy and delicious. I also love their bacon, which is generally a generous portion of 4 or 5 slices, and nice and thick. The Portuguese sausage is great too. But probably my favorite thing is the chicken teriyaki, and the teriyaki short ribs, which are odd breakfast items, but since Linda is Japanese, not surprising. It’s crazy good, and it’s a HUGE portion. Lastly, they make a ground round patty, by hand, that’s huge and juicy and delicious with breakfast.
They also offer, as an option to hash browns, either white rice, or fried rice (onions, bell peppers, and diced ham).
When I’m being really bad, my order is 2 over medium, fried rice, chicken teriyaki, and sourdough toast. Otherwise it’s the ground round (you can ask Jose, the cook, to add some onion and bell pepper to it as well), or pancakes and eggs, which as I said, are amazing.
I would like to address a few of the complaints I’ve seen below as well.
Not enough seating — it’s a tiny space, why give a place a bad review for being small?
No credit cards — it’s not unusual for small businesses to be cash only. Be prepared, and the liquor store ATM is 30 feet away, get over it.
Long wait/​favoritism — again, it’s a tiny space, with a single grill, that has 18 – 20 people walk in, sit down, and order all at once. Some things take longer to cook than others (the chicken teriyaki takes time, and grill space). I am a regular, and I can assure you that when I order things like the chicken teriyaki, or other time consuming things, lots of others are served before me. It’s not a matter of being slow, or favoring some people over others, it’s a matter of logistics.
Set your expectations, relax, and enjoy the food and the sense of community that is ever-​present in this place. Sure, the staff can be a bit frazzled on Sunday mornings, or during other times where the place is slammed. Why not empathize, rather than criticize? It’s a neighborhood place, with good food, good people, and good prices. It’s not some swanky high-​budget place in Hollywood. Again, set your expectations.
Peace!

How could I not like a place called the House of Breakfast?! This is a great little divey diner. But it is indeed little with only six counter seats and four tables. And sometimes you’re waiting for folks who are done eating but are just chatting away or reading the paper. If you can’t stick around, you can order pick-​up/​take-​out from the window on the side (you walk up to the window from the outside).
I dug Thomas O’s review of their pancakes and Portuguese sausage. I wasn’t feeling up for pancakes, but I decided on the PORTUGUESE SAUSAGE AND TWO EGGS. I got five grilled slices of sausage and my scrambled eggs actually came out as a sheet of eggs, plus the combo included hash browns and toast (I subbed an English muffin for $ 0.45 extra). It was all very good and surprisingly not greasy. You see sometimes diners get a bum rap for being grease traps!
If you can’t find parking in the tiny private lot, there’s plenty of residential parking nearby. Cash only.