Tommy’s Restaurant

We were hoping for a good simple breakfast. It was not good, at all: ((I tried an omelette and the meal was just scrambled eggs.

This is a true American Tale, mom and pop, for the people restaurant. Prices have not changed much from their early beginnings in 1973 at the original location in Monterey, to their second location in Seaside to their current home in Marina. If you are in the mood for a greasy spoon breakfast on the cheap look no further. It’s a Blend of Asian fried rice offerings and American Short order breakfast. A local’s spot for sure. This restaurant is a picture of the pursuit of the American Dream. Tommy his wife Julie and their son are the model of the true American family.

What this place lacks in variety and cleanliness it more than makes up for in price. Hands down the least expensive meal I have ever purchased. My dad and I both had 2 eggs, hash browns, and toast for a grand total of $ 3.25 with tax. The menu was an interesting mix of hearty american breakfast foods and Chinese cuisine. The food was pretty average but for the price we were blown away.

What an awesome little Mom & Pop breakfast place. The food is good and the prices are amazingly affordable. Their motto is «Breakfast for the working man».
You can get a basic plate with eggs and sausage for $ 1.95! A full breakfast with rice, two eggs, three sausage and three pancakes is $ 4.95. The best part is it’s good.
This couple has been here working together since 1973. I love small business owners that take pride in their business.

Excellent pancakes! I would have taken a picture but I ate them too fast. And I don’t even like pancakes!

First time here and wasn’t disappointed. The food was very good and was served fast. The place is small and you might have to wait to take a seat but worth the wait. Will definitely come back.

Great for a cheap breakfast if your feeling lazy and don’t want to break the pockets food is great but nothing you couldn’t whip up on your own, total local spot people just go here to see friends mostly, family that owns it runs it by themselves very nice people but caution get very busy if you don’t mind the possibility of waiting for a table to open up its nice simple atmosphere they also do orders to go.

You can’t beat a 99 cent breakfast! Judy will always make sure you have plenty of coffee and that you leave happy!

Service isn’t the best, but food is pretty good. The wait wasn’t long. CASH ONLY! The location was cool and parking was on the street.

it’s not the looks. good food and hospitality. Judy is awesome! thanks for having me during my trip!

If you can’t handle a little tough love from judy you’re a total pansy ass. The place is a dollar, and she keeps my coffee refilled. Do people expect her to come out with bow tie and vest to cater to your every need. Leave Judy alone and go have breakfast in Carmel for 50 $ if it’s that much of a problem.
Tip:sub your hash browns for fried rice it’s super bomb and no extra charge. Get the ham or sausage, not the bacon because the bacon is turkey.

In love with this place! Great service, the lady is demanding, but hey! When talking to her she is real sweet!
The breakfast is AMAZING for the cheap price.
We only spend $ 28 for a party of 5.
Can’t wait to come back.
There should be more places like this.
Thank you for your service.

It’s Turkey bacon, barely cooked, my eggs were runny, and five groups after us were served first. The old lady is very demanding and rude… the coffee is fresh though. Even at the four dollar breakfast price, I wouldn’t come back

Wow cheap food here, you can get a breakfast for 99 cents. A friendly Korean couple runs this place. The two of us ate for less than $ 12. Parking maybe an issue but worth it.

Coffe was tasteless I asked for fresh coffe but she ridicule me in front of all the customers also restaurant it’s nasty

I recently found out about this place through a friend. I have done Unilocal searches in the area but it never showed up. It’s like a secret locals place I have never heard of before. I have to say, even though I don’t usually go for the greasy breakfast I was quite pleased:-)
The woman taking orders is a little on the comical side. I did not get a rude vibe like what other Unilocalers have said. The woman is indeed very loud, but this could be because of her hearing or something. We sat in the front counter while she took our order very loudly, she was only standing right in front of us that’s what made it funny.
I can’t complain about the service though, it was very fast. I got there about 35 mins before work and still made it to work on time with a full belly. We got the Tommy’s special, my eggs were cooked well and not dried out and the hash browns were also decent, the bacon I did not touch, and the coffee was just right. All in all it was a good experience and I have been wanting to try their cheap breakfast since I heard of the place.
The food portion is more than enough for the price, we paid $ 11 for two Tommy’s specials and two coffee’s. I recommend Tommy’s for those times when you running low on cash are hungry and in a rush.

Cash only!!!
Food didn’t look great but was tasty, coffee was strong.
Small but cozy, could use a makeover inside, restroom wasn’t too bad although it’s unisex. Gals that means wipe the seat before sitting down. Great prices on the menu!

If you want a CHEAP breakfast with some comedy on the side then this is your place to eat!
Judy just cracks me up. Whatchew want to eat? Sit here! Reminds me of my Grandma.
Both of our meals with coffee was only 8 bucks! Can’t beat that anywhere.

I love this place. Hands down the most entertaining place you can have breakfast too. The cute Asian mom yelling at customers in a friendly way of course to sit down and asked if they wanted coffee.
The son works here regularly too and it’s cute when him and his mom go at it. :)
You can’t beat the price and the food is decent, especially if you just want someone else to cook something for your stomach.
If you visit enough you will start to recognize the regulars – which is always fun! :) almost like a sense of belonging.
Just a tip – don’t ask for egg whites. lol
Unilocal ⁴⁄₁₀₀

Summary:
— Service — omg, she’s JUST like my grandma LOL [“I love you BUT shut up and eat” attitude]
— Cost — dirt cheap… actually, cheaper than dirt, wait, is that possible?
— Food — nothing spectacular
— Ambiance — a small diner with grandma in charge! ^_​^
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FOOD:
Nothing spectacular in taste… in fact, I think they need to work on their eggs that are done sunny-​side up so that its not «runny-​side» up. Honestly, having gone through survival training back in the good old days, I can eat most things raw and still enjoy it. Eggs… happen to one of those too. So yeah, its all good.
Fried rice may have been a little dry but had adequate flavor to them just like all the other dish that my friends and I sampled together.
But the game winner is their «Working Man’s Breakfast» for $ 0.99. I don’t care if the eggs are served raw or the toast is un-​toasted or if the hash is undercooked, overcooked, or even raw… it’s still $ 0.99! As this is a cooked to order dish… it shoves McDonalds back to expensive breakfast land. So if I already think that way about how the food is cooked… which of course comes out MUCH better than that… they become an immediate winner in my book.
If you’re scared of raw [or semi-​raw] eggs, just ask for it to be scrambled. Don’t be one of those snobs either asking for egg whites only [which they won’t serve]. You’re in the wrong place as eating healthy means paying more… and that’s already a generally accepted equation.
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SERVICE:
Okay, I understand if anyone gets intimidated by mama [or grandma] if they have not been previously warned. Buuuuut GOSH, I *LOVE* HER! She totally reminds me of my own grandma!
She practically shouts at you and is so blatantly DIRECT! Of course, she’s NOT being rude… think of it as…[like in Hong Kong], those with harder of hearing tend to turn up the volume of their voices to compensate [so they can hear their own voice]. I mean, she’s totally friendly with me and even my fair lady made a comment about it, lol.
Most of your dining experience here if its busy will probably be:
«HOW MAANY???» [aka: how many your party?]
«YOU LEAD-​E?» [aka: ready to order?]
«COUGH-​EEEE?» [aka: do you want coffee?]
«WAT U WANT»
But hey, you’re here to eat… and grandma’s boss, just sit down, keep your trap shut, and eat. Some of the other gentlemen here had smirks on their faces as she barked her questions. She doesn’t mean to be that loud and all regulars know it and accept her love for us!
PS. I burst out laughing when son and mom were arguing about some orders when she suddenly whips out the «mom card» and goes, «I DE BOSS, YOU DO I SAY!!!» End of argument, lolol.
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Sure enough there are some other things that may gross people out. Condiments like soy sauce need to be replaced with new bottles [yes, yes, it was caked with something]. BUT I see it this way… the ketchup bottle and creamer for coffee were clean. That’s all I need… that’s all I want… and that’s all I’d care to hear about from anyone.
GRANDMA! I’m O-​M-​W for breeeeeeeeeakfast!!!