Nell’s Diner

Unfortunately, Nell’s is no longer in business. They closed sometime around the end of March, 2016…

Amazing diamond in the ruff! A true «Locals» joint with regulars — including me ! Food is very very inexpensive, PORTIONS ARE BiG! Homemade EvErYthing!
2 WORDS TO REMEMBER, beans and CORNBREAD!!!

I would’ve never thought to come to Nell’s but I had purchased DealSaver’s burger basket card that included a free burger so I came to enjoy that. It was a decent burger. In fact the meat was really tasty. It had the usual toppings of onion tomato lettuce and mayo, and cheese. The menu had many burger choices. We also ordered wings which were so-​so. I was expecting hot wings but they were just breaded and fried plain wings. Our waitress was nice but the service was very slow. The worst things were the fries. Just frozen fries like you’d get from kroger and they were very soggy. Overall I wasn’t really disappointed because I wasn’t expecting much.

My wife and I returned after enjoying our first visit several months ago. Then we had a Groupon (or similar deal) so I wanted to return and try something different and patronize the business.
We arrived at a odd time (2:45 pm) and there was only one other table seated. The server was prompt and brought our drinks quickly. She asked if we were ready, gave requested feedback on our request for suggestions and left us to ponder the menu since we weren’t quite ready to order. She then sat at the bar with her back to us, we had to go and get her when we were ready to order. Other than that stumble she did a good job of serving us.
My wife ordered the Mushroom Bacon Swiss Burger (add grilled onions) and I ordered the Jalapeño Cheeseburger, as the server recommended, (also, add grilled onions). Both with the fries (cooked crisp) as the side of choice.
The burgers were served hot and juicy and both were delicious, the server was right on with mine, they were well worth the price. The fries were hot and cooked perfectly.
Okay, so why the two star rating you are thinking… Well, this is where it all falls apart.
The fries tasted kinda good to begin with because they were so fresh but as they cooled they tasted as tho they were cooked in old oil, well past its prime. (The belches to come later only served to confirm this.) But, the straw that broke the deal, as I was munching away I looked down and there it was, a small black hair, about the size of the average eyebrow hair, laying in the burger juices on my plate. I said nothing to the wife, I nonchalantly swiped it away with my finger thinking this sucks, but it happens, I’ll go ahead and finish off the burger. But then I looked down and there it was, ANOTHER little black hair. Ugh!
We finished up, flagged the server down, paid, left a modest tip and left. I don’t think we will return, I am truly sad.

Great food, nice people… I had the cub steak today it is the best you’ll ever eat, they also had banana pudding today, it was all delicious and the service is wonderful

I’ve eaten here a few times now and I haven’t had anything I didn’t like. I will say the salmon croquettes are my favorite dish, but I hear the burger is amazing! I am a big judge of a place by the side dishes they offer and I have tried nearly all of the sides and I haven’t found one that I didn’t like. Of course anywhere that has greens on the menu gets a few bonus points. Overall it’s not fancy and it feels like home.

Nell’s is probably my favorite local restaurant. The interior is non-​descript with golfing posters on the walls. It is kind of a clean dive. Their lunch plate specials are excellent country cooking at very reasonable prices. They offer great hamburgers, club sandwiches, and a fantastic ribeye sandwich, but their lunch specials are the restaurant’s best finds. The menu changes daily with various entrees (salmon croquettes, fried chicken, kraut and sausage) along with two vegetables and pancake-​like cornbread ho-​cakes. Definitely give this place a try.

If you’ve never eaten here then YOU’RE missing out. My favorite dive in all of Lexington and the food is amazing!