The Nook

This place is gross, do not go here. Horrible diner food that is basically slop

The fries are pretty crispy, the mac is cheesy/​flavorful and I love the noodles they use, but someone really needs to teach the chef how to make a roux — the sauce was still a bit too floury and thick to be a truly perfect melty cheesy goodness. The crab cake sandwich was tasty, though thin. The wraps looked pitiful and are drowned in dressing.
This place has a lot of character and potential, but needs a facelift and a staffing refresh. It took a while for someone to seat us, even though staffers looked up at us several times. The blonde who was our server was totally on drugs. She was rude, didn’t seem to care one bit about being there and she asked the same questions several times and forgot things.
The food is overall just mediocre cheap stuff and the ‘famous’ mac needs work, along with the server staff.

Located on the Downtown Mall in Charlottesville since 1951, the Nook is a classic, which is why our friends took us there for a late (hangover) breakfast/​brunch when we were visiting Charlottesville. Great location, great interior, great ambiance, great history, great service. Three of the four of us couldn’t resist the mac and cheese menu (they have about 15 macs). I tried the Granny mac (mac and cheese with tuna and tomato). While we all loved our macs (including me — tuna and cheese? who knew that’d be so delicious), we all agreed that it was too rich (especially for a hungover breakfast). I think my friend and I finished ¹⁄₁₀ of our «small’ portion, and my boyfriend, who usually doesn’t leave a bite on his plate, only finished about ¹⁄₃ of his large portion. The over-​richness and portions of the macs aside, the Nook has such great character, and I’d definitely go again if I’m in Charlottesville.

This is a very good diner style restaurant. They have a extensive menu and the prices are not out of control. We have been there a few times and got breakfast all of the times. The omlets, and breakfast sandwiches are great. They can even give you french fries for breakfast too. If you get that I suggest getting the fries with cheese and gravy — YUMM!!!

Stopped by during a day trip in Charlottesville, very hungry! We (6 people) had to wait for a fairly long time but we were constantly checked on by staff to make sure we’d been helped. Turned out there was a group using the right-​sized table that wouldn’t leave, but we eventually got seated elsewhere, despite having to sit at separate tables (3 of us at each table), which we didn’t really mind. The booths are nice! Anyways, the chips and dip ended up being pretty good. The chicken tenders were okay in the dry rub spice, nothing to write home about. Good tater tots. They definitely gave me way too much dressing to go with my chicken tenders, though. I couldn’t eat it all and left quite a bit. For dessert, I got the banana pudding, which was disappointing. Came in a huge goblet, so it’s a big serving. No bananas in the pudding, just tasted like Jell-​O from the box. I wish I had gotten a different dessert as the rest looked pretty good, but the pudding made me feel nauseous and I couldn’t eat any more.
All in all, it’s okay. Great location, nice interior, most of the food was good. Cons: the banana pudding, and the staff which seemed a bit all over the place, but at least they weren’t rude.

This place is lovely. The service was fast and friendly, even during the Saturday brunch rush. The food is simple but filling and, above all, affordable! We will be back here often!

Went here for dinner and breakfast. Good food at reasonable prices. This is an old 50’s style place that is a must see.

The Nook is easily the best place in Charlottesville to go to if your looking for an amazing breakfast. Their French Toast and Bacon are to die for!

Decent homey comfort food. I like sitting outside on the mall. Mac and cheese is their specialty, but on my last visit it was not very good.

On the advice of a local, we decided to try The Nook for breakfast. It was a sunny and pleasant morning so we sat outside in their patio area. The inside is classic diner and the outside is… A patio. The coffee was forgettable. Thin & weak. The pancakes were great! The tomato and basil omelet was very good. Our server was friendly and quite attentive during the 45 minutes it took to get our food…
So, if coffee isn’t a passion and if you have time, give it a try.

We’ve been to The Nook twice for brunch on the weekend. The first time, it was warm out, so we took advantage of their lovely outdoor seating in the middle of the mall. The second time, we dined indoors – I preferred the outdoor seating because the inside is pretty dated and just isn’t as nice.
On our first visit, we ordered Bloody Marys at the bar and thought we could bring them outside to the patio area to wait for our table. There was some confusion and after trying to head outside, the bartender informed us that we, the customers, were not allowed to carry alcohol outside, but if we were dining outside the server could, and it would be all good. Weird logic and not really a great start to a restaurant we were trying for the first time, but all was forgotten once our meals arrived.
I read a bunch of reviews and went with the recommendation for the crab egg Benedict. I’m not normally a huge hollandaise sauce fan, but The Nook does theirs right. It also is a great complement to the crab, and I thoroughly enjoyed the dish. Talking about it now is making my mouth water. I also really enjoyed their homefries. Everyone else seemed to really enjoy their dishes as well!
On the second visit, I was in serious need of some greasy food. I ordered the veggie lover wrap with a side of fries. It really hit the spot and was really affordable too. The service was great on both visits. I would definitely go back to The Nook for brunch in the future!

Meh. I ordered an egg burrito. It was dry, lacking in flavor and I had to send it back to ask for more cheese. The plate had no garnish. I was just served a burrito cut in half. Hello presentation! However my friend had the shrimp and grits which was delicious. In retrospect I wish I had gotten that!

Delicious food, cool location, great and attentive service staff. It was really cozy. Fans were on full blast that made it a bit chilly but other than that just a really good ways breakfast joint. Wooden benches are a bit hard to sit on so if that worries you ask for a table, the chairs are padded.
I recommend it. You won’t be disappointed.

Mom & I stumbled across The Nook after strolling through the Downtown Mall. It looked so cute from the outside, and a quick glance at the menu had us quite excited.
Went inside and the excitement continued. The unique art print of the mall + The Nook on the right hand side as you enter is great. The old timey coat hanger is fab. The fans! Ahhh! Never seen anything like them before. The floor is tiled & feels old-​timey. The old photographs of the area hanging all over are cute as well.
Being a huge mac & cheese fan, I opted for that. I chose the simple roma tomatoes & basil mac & cheese, while my mom got an omelette. This is sort of where the experience took a turn.
My mom wanted to sort of tailor her omelette, nothing crazy, just mushrooms, ham & american. Our waiter (a young guy, seemingly inexperienced) said that he didn’t know if they could do that, and my mom, being the easy-​going type she is, said — okay, if not, I’ll take the Mushroom & Swiss Omelette.
We ordered the Kettle Chips & Onion Dip as an appetizer.
He brought out the appetizer. It wasn’t very good. First of all — we really expected the kettle chips to be homemade. They weren’t, and they also weren’t very good. Neither was the Onion Dip. I would not recommend it.
Then came our meals. He put the Mushroom & Swiss Omelette in front of my mom, saying that they couldn’t do what she wanted. Now — that fact aside, I would think it appropriate for him to mention this to her prior to the meal actually coming out … perhaps when he dropped off the appetizer?
My mom was fine with this, but when we really started thinking about it, it was a little silly. The omelette she got had mushrooms & swiss. She just wanted to swap the cheese to american & add ham, which she would have been more than happy to pay extra for. The menu said nothing about «no substitutions». We actually started wondering whether our waiter even asked the kitchen about this, as he seemed so inexperienced.
My mac & cheese was underwhelming. The tomatoes & basil were both very good & flavorful, but the macaroni & cheese itself lacked something major.
Tip: A few reviews here say that the portions are small. This is NOT the case, in our meals anyway. Unfortunately I didn’t take any pictures, but the mac & cheese was big enough for 2 meals, in fact I ate less than ½ & gave the rest to a homeless gentleman down the street. My mom’s omelette was huge, on par with the size you get in a NYC diner.
Prices were not astronomical to us, but for the quality of food we were disappointed in the prices.
Ultimately, we loved the atmosphere, and this place could be something great, but we would definitely not return.

We came here on a Saturday mog for dinner. It wasn’t too crowded and we were seated promptly. The interiors are quite unique and cute and service was good.
As for the food, our table of six came to the conclusion that the breakfast food (served all day) is probably better than the dinner food.
Meatloaf — your average meatloaf. Lacking in some flavors/​a bit bland. The mashed potatoes and gravy were delicious and savory.
Country fried steak from what I tried was delicious!
The fries were good, they look a bit dry (not your typical grease that comes with fries) but were surprising warm and tasty !
A-​okay food plus decent service means you can’t go wrong if you’re looking for decent breakfast diner-​esque food !

Great breakfast sandwich, eggs ham and bread cover with syrup! Never had that so good.