Chili Mac’s Diner

This is a great, little, hole-​in-​the-​wall diner in the middle of downtown St. Louis. The diner has only 10 or so tables and a bar that overlooks the kitchen. The ladies that run the diner are awesome; very friendly and able to make the home cooking that will remind you of your own mother’s.
You know it is good when you see locals walk in and eat by themselves. That is a test that not many places can pass. Don’t expect super fancy meals, the basics are all you will find here.

I have no idea how this place is rated so highly. I sat and watched cross contamination of raw food left and right. The biscuits are kept on a shelf, in a Rubbermaid type storage container and heated in the microwave. I watched the main cook touch raw meat, then open a bag of shredded cheese, which spilled on the counter, then she brushed it with her raw meat hands, back into a container. The potatoes sit in oil on the flat top. They are raw and oily.
Everything about this place is gross and the flavor is mediocre at best.
The only positive is that it is cheap.
Gross gross gross.

Spent a few days in St. Louis and tried this place for breakfast. It is very reasonably priced, very friendly, and the food was good.
Was going to try some place else the next day just to branch out, but went back again because it was just too good not to go back.

If you need a breakfast fix then this is your place. Nothing fancy here folks just your typical American style diner that serves a solid breakfast of which will knock the socks off your hipster friendly establishments of today. Service was friendly and prompt. Coffee was good too! I also like there style of breakfast potatoes. Lastly, I’m not entirely sure how seating would be when they are busy, but I got there early so no worries there.

Food was affordable, fast, and the French toast was delicious. Wish I had found this place faster!

Had breakfast here 2 days in a row. Friendly service.

Great place for breakfast. If you’re downtown you gotta eat here.
Small place so be patient for a table.
Everything on the menu is great.

Tried this place for lunch and it is terrific. It is the old time diner with the great prices, food and people. It is a definite must go to place.

So this is what it must of been like in the past… wow what a great place. The food is unique but if you love chili this is your place. Had I known about this place sooner this review would not be my first.
Come in and enjoy this laid back diner with good food!

I’ve been eating there for many years and Will continue eating chili and burgers till I hear from my doctors.

Had breakfast there this morning. Three great ladies run the show. I recommend the pancakes. The place has great ambience of a diner from the past. Nothing fancy, but a great value and a cheerful crew.

What I like about it: cheap food.
What I don’t like: Watching 5 «regulars» Order after me and get their food first. I wouldn’t make this a regular lunch spot because of that. Took almost 30 minutes to get a to-​go order.
The hamburger buns are not big enough for the patty. The French fries are thin sticks of cardboard that get cold quickly.
As an alternative I would suggest Monty’s a couple blocks away for a great burger, only a couple bucks more.

Do yourself a favor… don’t read another review until you look at the pictures. What do they all have in common? Food swimming in Chili! Hot dogs, spaghetti, YES SPAGHETTI, cheeseburgers, eggs… you name it… covered in the same chili. How can you tell the dishes in the pictures apart?
I was going to take a picture of my food, but it was covered in, well, you know. Truth is, I thought I was getting a «slinger». To me, that’s a burger with an egg right? What I got was burger on a plate, covered in chili. I ate it like a champion and didn’t complain. I just wish it wasn’t noon and I wish I was drunk… that would have hit the spot!
This place would be a great «greasy spoon» joint at 2am when the bars let out. Until then, it’ll have to settle for a 5am greasy spoon before you go to work. Yes, it’s a diner just like the name would have you believe. But the pictures are worth a thousand words covered in chili.

Awesome staff and fantastic food. Being a native Pennsylvanian, aka Pencil, dumping a mound of chili, cheese and onion on top of my eggs over easy didn’t exactly seem delectable. However all it took was one bite and I was overcome by the sudden urge to decide devouring my own body weight in Chili Mac food was perfectly acceptable. My husband also ordered the Eggs in Sauce and like me, embraced gluttony for the morning.
To add to the positives, Tony Hawk was dining there just minutes prior to our arrival which solidified our opinion. If the Kick-​Flip King took time to visit the place, it really is worth the trip.

Perfect greasy spoon, 3 nice ladies running the show and inexpensive. Traditional short order menu with nothing fancy. The ambiance reminded me of the old tv show Alice without Mel.
If you like greasy spoons, then I’d recommend this over the hotel buffet even though staff at the hotel buffet were great and the food was good. I paid less at the diner for my son and I than at the hotel buffet where kids eat free. My 7 yr old recommends the pancakes!

Great breakfast… very affordable and great waitress! We ordered the bacon and eggs, a short stack of pancakes, and a ham and egg breakfast sandwich. The pancakes were the best! They were crispy around the edges and tasted yummy! We are staying at a hotel around the corner and will probably eat there again before we leave.

After eating cold cereal and pastries at the Hilton for two days, I put my foot down and said «we need to find a diner». Luckily this place was maybe 2 – 3 blocks from the hotel and has great reviews.
The diner did not disappoint. Waitresses were charming and the New York steak and eggs was damn tasty. If it wasn’t bitter cold the next few days. I would have eaten there every morning.

It was Jessica C who told me the Slinger is to St. Louis what the Coney dog is to Detroit, and that my friend is great way to explain it. I wasn’t sure exactly what it was that was under all the chili, all that cheese & all those onions. I scrolled threw photos & I Googled Slinger & I thought I had a pretty good idea what I was getting myself into, or did I???
After a ½ day along the Mississippi River & visiting the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial exploring the Arch and all its swaying glory we walked a couple blocks & hit Chili Macs. We arrived just before they closed for the day. The lady working the counter was super nice & told us to just pick a spot. Vintage tables, old school tiled floors & red vinyl chairs as we sat just a couple feet from the throw back flattop grill where we sat in awwww as servers rambled off «Coney Island» short orders lingo. We tried to focus so we could hurry up & order before they closed but we couldn’t believe how the owner working the register called back every order in a bag as the customers stepped foot in the door to pick up their carry out before they even said a word. Somewhere in the mist of watching this busy diner in action I must have ordered, because a plate with beef patties, eggs over medium, hash browns & a tamale loaded with chili, cheese & onions was placed in front of me. Most people would just eat this dish with a fork, but Chili Macs takes this one step further. They serve this loaded plate of goodness with two pieces of picture perfect toast. As hungry as I was, as much as this big guy can put away when something tastes as good as this, I could not finish this plate. I had to do it. I pulled out a napkin from the napkin dispenser that was made in the early 70’s, wiped the chili & cheese off my face and threw in the towel. Chili Mac’s made us feel at home & this is yet another gem of a restaurant St. Louis has every reason to be proud of.

I have to admit, I love this place, it’s a guilty pleasure in the morning. The ladies remember who I am, coffee is in front of me before I sit down, before they ask, «Eggs in the sauce, over easy, light cheese, onions, and wheat?» I just nod in my early morning stupor and begin downing the first cup of delicious ‘This cup has been in use since the 60’s’ cup of coffee.
Probably my favorite go-​to spot in StL for a quick, awesome breakfast. Their chili kind of reminds me of Skyline chili from where I grew up close to Cincinnati. It is a light consistency, no beans, just meat and spices, maybe some chocolate or cocoa in it. Think you can add beans, but beans in the morning + coffee with creamer is a big No-​No. My coworkers thank me.
The Eggs in the sauce is the deliciously crispy but not too crispy potatoes, followed up by two over easy eggs (mmm, runnyness), topped with Chili, and then I get a little bit of cheese because I’m trying to be healthy here, and some onions. This dish, of course, would not be complete without some Frank’s Red Hot sauce on top. The toast is just that, toast like the $.79cent discount toast your mom used to make you eat. For some reason, it goes perfectly with this delicious meal. Once done, don’t forget to tip these ladies well, I swear they are there every day of their lives at 4 or 4:30, and even though they say, «The attitude is free» They are the biggest sweethearts in the world.
I’ve had lunch here too, the 3-​way, 4-​way, and 5-​way as they call them back home, comprising of Chili noodles and cheese, then onions, then beans respectively was definitely a reminder of the chili I had back there. Prices are amazing, and as long as you don’t tell your cardiologist about cheating on him with Chili Mac, you’ll be good to go.
This is a St Louis staple, you won’t be disappointed!

I came with two of my friends here for breakfast after seeing a long list of raving reviews on Unilocal.They feature a variety of chili dishes and the atmosphere was packed, cramped, and bustling. This diner was well lit with an open kitchen to the left and a score of small white tables tightly stacked horizontally to face the entrance.
I arrived late and was not enthused by the combo dishes that my friends ordered. Instead, I got the Tamale 21 In ($ 5.25) that came with two tamales smothered with chili and a handful of cheese that wouldn’t melt. The people that shared our table chuckled and asked if I had brought any Tums to deal with this hot mess. I turned to my friends and they refused to have anything to do with it even after their unsatisfactory breakfast combo.
The quality of the tamales was subpar with dry, crumbly textures softened by the piping hot chili. At the core was stuffed with really bad quality ground beef and the chili was bland until I applied hot sauce to enhance it.
In the beginning I needed some time to make a decision but the server took a long time to come back to the table once I was ready. The combination of a super cramped eating environment, horrible tamales, and slow service resulted in a 2 stars rating. I later showed the food picture to my Unilocal friend who is originally from St. Louis and he too couldn’t believe what he was seeing. I won’t be coming back.