Gramma Lucy's Cafe

My party of three arrived on a Saturday morning at about 9:30. What a friendly greeting! Both the cook and waitress welcomed us and asked how we were. There was only one other party there and we were shown to our choice of seating right away. Pros: Friendly greeting, excellent job with my special toast order Cons: Dirty bathroom, cafeteria-feel more

If you are looking for a hearty breakfast without a scene or trendy attitude, come to this neighborhood spot. The food is perfect to start your day - and take you well into your afternoon. Potatoes and eggs are great, any way you get them here, but the treat on the menu is the hotcakes (I may have figured out the secret ingredient, but mine don't taste as good). The veggie gravy is so tasty - on a biscuit, potatoes or the potato cakes or carbo pile-up. more

Gramma Lucy's Cafe on Division is, as the header trumpets, unpretentious. Not in that small town we-been-doin'-it-like-this-forever mode, here it's all very calculated and a direct extension of it's owner, a gentleman by the name of Mark. Mark directs traffic with an alert and hustling staff who keep things hoppin' from grill to cup. I stopped in for a Saturday midday meal and struggled to choose among the menu items, all screaming ""Order me! Order me!"" I finally settled on Bennie's Biscuits, a mound of flaky buttermilk biscuits, fried ham, country gravy and a pair of eggs. What was amazing was that they arrived quicker than any fast food order that wasn't sitting on a stainless shelf behind the uniformed server. Seriously, this hot, fresh, flavorful tribute to ""Bennie"" arrived in around two minutes! There's something lasagna-like about this dish, layers of luscious, steamy ham on hot biscuits, all swimming in country sausage studded gravy. I ordered the eggs sunny-side up, so the resultant molten yolk just added to the sauciness of the dish. I couldn't get my coffee cup to half full as server Andrew kept a weather eye on my cup and everything else happening in the room. Owner Mark's son Alex mans the grill with a deft speed that would make him a full share crew member on one of the Deadliest Catch's king crabbers. A guy like that would be worth his weight in gold when you're burning 5,000 calories a day. And Mark, in another life, might be at the helm, booming voice meeting and greeting friends, neighbors and new faces. There's no attempt to impress at Gramma Lucy's, just fabulous food and lightning fast service. Next time out I'm going for GLC's hamburger, when I asked Andrew about it his eyes rolled skyward...toward heaven. Pros: Fast, friendly service; killer breakfasts that'll carry you through to dinner Cons: No a/c, on hot days opt for the sidewalk tables and watch the sou'easters go by more

gramma is a great guy and cook who chooses great staff. the menu is varied and everything is prepared just the way you order it. and making up your own dish is possible, as long as they have the ingredients. onmivore, vegetarian and atkins friendly. hamburgers and fries are the best i have found in portland, so far. in fact i have given up trying the other hamburger joints. Pros: fair prices, take good care of ya, great food more