Jim Dandy Drive-In

Prices were decent, food was just ok, some cute decorations but the place is run down and needs work. The worst part was the staff. The cooks were teenage boys that we got to listen to talk about their urine streams while we ordered… not very appetizing.

Found this Place net to my hotel to go for breakfast the last couple of days and it was always a great feeling, a good and tasty breakfast, a strong coffee and a great athmosphere like travelling back in the good old times. Love this place and to all calling the staff somehow rude: visit a Berlin/​Germany restaurant, and you will learn, what kind of rude the people can be… I had a good talk with the people there and they were really patient with my complicated european style and bad english…

I’ve driven by this place countless times, never once thinking I was going to go there. I thought it was a bar or someplace shady. But today, on a walk with the family, for some unknown reason, I Unilocaled this place to see what it was. I checked out the pictures and we decided why not. We’re hungry!
We walk inside and was taken back a bit by all the memorabilia on the walls. Figured this place has some history to it. Might be worth our while.
A little confusing at first cause we didn’t know it was open seating. Grabbed a few menus and placed our order. Played Hangman while we waited for our food. Had a few laughs.
Good eventually came out. I got a bacon double cheeseburger, wife got a double cheeseburger, Kids got chicken and a plain burger respectfully. To our surprise, the food was quite tasty. Very flavorful. Kids loved their chicken. Fries were pretty good also. We all left there with our bellies full and satisfied.
We shall return to this little hole in the wall establishment to try out something different, but so far, so good.

The odd smell? For decades there used to be an indoor smoking room, since it is no longer allowed in doors, I assume the smell is left over from the smoking room.
but food is always fresh. can’t beat a place that’s been around for decades!

This place is a gem amongst gems! Burgers are cheap, like $ 4 or $ 5, super tasty. Fries are delicious. My guy gets the chicken sammies or the grilled cheese, no complaints there. Their milkshakes… holy guacamole. Don’t even get me started! Sticky Fingers milkshake is seriously the best thing ever invented ever. Ever. My guy gets the orange creamsicle milkshake almost every time and it’s gone within like 30 seconds. Definitely no complaints there. Only downside is they close at 8! Wah! I get it though, the employees are all high school-​ish aged so they want their nights to go party or do whatever high schoolers do, I get it. Jim Dandy has been around forever for a reason, and that reason is because they are AWESOME.

I’ve walked, drove, skipped and jumped passed Jim Dandy’s for years now. I never cared to go in, even though some of my older family members frequent this diner.
We drove by today and my boyfriend decided that this is what he wanted… but of course I went to Unilocal for advise first.
Jim Dandy’s basically has that old school diner feel to it without the spirit. You can get a decent burger, hot fries and good milk shakes but the experience will make you second guess your return.
No one should ever feel like they aren’t wanted, especially a customer! The older Caucasian woman is lifeless and rude, because of her he won’t be returning unless it’s carryout.
With all of that being said he really did enjoy his burger. The presentation was mouth watering and the fries were nice and hot. My advice for this diner is CARRYOUT WITHOUT A DOUBT!!!
Happy Unilocaling…

Cool little eclectic place. There was a Good variety on the menu, and the service was satisfactory. I would definitely go again when I am back in Portland.

This place is by far my favorite place to get a burger in Portland. The people are so nice who work there and everything is cooked right then and there perfectly! I never leave disappointed. Their sauce on the cheeseburgers is to die for, and their claim strips are perfectly crispy.

I used to love this place when I was little and came to get milkshakes but haven’t been there in a few years. I went there the other day when it was really hot to get a milkshake and a tuna sandwich. After I ordered, I ended waiting for a really long time because all of the cooks were staring at a girl outside whom was wearing some booty shorts. When I finally got my order, the fries were cold, the bread was really stale and there was hardly any tuna on the sandwich. It was super disappointing.

Greasy frozen food. Foul mouth customer. Dirty environment. Could be a fun little dive if someone cared about the place. Until then best used as a homeless shelter.

Well I said things never change, well I was wrong, lots of drug dealers, and other shirtless creeps hanging around the parking lot. Wasn’t sure if I wanted to park my car there while I had breakfast. Food still good, service not bad, but the owner is going to lose his better patrons if these creeps keep hanging around, sorry but that’s the way it is.

Food is decent diner type eats. My rating and this review is based on the counter/​waitress who is a Witch… or something that rhymes with Witch. … I walk in and before I get a chance to take off my sunglasses to look at the menu on the wall (which is by the front door) A woman looks over the counter and asks with the rudest tone «Are those prescription lenses?» Since I was in the process of taking them off by now since I was inside… I asked what she was talking about and pointed to a sign that said no sunglasses. I laughed because I get it, they’ve been robbed, but I pulled up next to the cameras and front door in a Jaguar… doubt I was there to rob the place lol but oh well on to the ordering from this scary looking rude woman. Me: French Toast&bacon. Both good. Him: Breakfast burrito, his usual, he says it’s his favorite of anywhere. 1 star for the food. Would have gave 3 but the counter witch killed my vibe lol

Fries were cold and so was burger, wouldn’t even melt cheese on top. Seems like food should be warm as it comes from 10 ft away. Rude service from mousie counter girl. Seems like more of a video poker oriented place. Will NOT return.

Through the years i have eaten here alot … always good 50’s style drive in … food is as good now as it was the first time i ate there in the early 60’s

If you enjoy traveling back in time, and eating the best burger this side of the Mississippi river, then Jim Dandy Drive-​In is for you. The walls are covered with memorabilia from the late 30’s to the present day. Enjoy reading about Hitler while eating Kosher hotdog, or hit the lotto machines with a fine «Dandy» Milk Shake.
The employees are genuinely friendly, and do a great job in the kitchen. Make sure you tip very well, because they deserve it.

Saw this on the way to the hotel. I thought it was a mini-​mart or something and looked deserted at 3 PM. I Googled it and found Unilocal reviews, so figured I’d give it a shot.
I rarely eat inside alone, but they had good beer (Black Butte Porter) and the inside is really pretty cool with all the old time stuff. Plus they had Pawn Stars on the TV which is what I would have watched in the hotel anyway. There was something about the smell, but certainly not urine. Maybe a hint of ammonia but nothing annoying.
I had the Jim Dandy burger with tater puffs (I had to ask — they’re tots).
Pretty decent burger. Not too big, not too small. I got mine medium rare, but next time I would go medium. The tots were piping hot so freshly fried but no hint of fish taste as someone else mentioned.
Limited parking access as it’s on a busy street (I had to go down the side street and make a u-​turn or else hold up traffic waiting to make the left turn).
I liked it. I’d go back (and get a shake).

Love this place. A huge variety of flavored milkshakes. The coney dog is good. Like looking and reading the old memorabilia on the walls. Burger and Fries are good.
One of a kind place to visit.

I like this place. I’m fairly easy to please, of course. But three of us girls had lunch for $ 20 — and we were all fried out when we were finished.
We split a bacon cheeseburger (lots of bacon, nice sauce), chicken strips (cooked perfectly, basic but good) and a reuben (could have used more pastrami). Fries and onion rings both good and cooked in fresh oil. None of us ordered a milkshake — which is a damn shame. But I am pleased to announce that after trying my friend’s soda — I am, indeed, a Pepper!
The place is cute — a cabinet full of toys and old toy cars. The menu is full, The prices aren’t bad. The customers were few in number and kinda gloomy, and the help… well she was no Alice! or Flo. But all in all, I enjoyed it.

OK burger stand that has been around for very long time. I’ve eaten here maybe 5 – 6 times, but only once recently.
This place would warrant 3 stars, but the value for what you get at the price asked is definitely NOT par with other, better places.
And, I asked them to hold the customary sauce (ketchup and 1000 Island, I think) on my burger, instead to give me a couple mayo packets.
What? There is a charge for that?
WTF? I mean, really… WTF??? On top of already VERY high prices, they want to CHARGE me for basic condiments? At a burger stand???
They also have the smallest «Large tots» I’ve ever seen. It arrived and was so small I even verified it was not a mistake. I got about 10 in a large. I can go other places and for a large, at the same price, get a «Large» served in a Frisbee full of tots.
With so many other better burger places around, I am not encouraged to return here.

The 4 star rating is only for the burgers and malts, the rest of the food earns a 3.
There’s too many varied burger offerings for one category. Is it fare to compare a $ 10 version on a duck fat brioche bun with foie gras to those offered by Five Guys and Killer Burger, or that middle tier such as McMenamins and Red Coach? Jim Dandy’s falls into the old-​school definition: delicious malts and hot rods out in the parking lot give you an idea of the style here. I love this place and the ambiance (not the best word choice for this diner) is a big part of it. A cheese burger with fried onions and a fried egg on a non-​gluten free bun is the regular order. No sea-​salt frozen fries seem very fitting here. Service is as good as expected, nothing over the-​top, not rude either. Prices are very reasonable. Others food items are a little hit and miss. If you’re looking for a knife and fork for your burger, maybe it was a mistake to go in.