Nellie’s Cafe on Kensington

I love the atmosphere very country shabby chic. However. The waitresses seem angry with life and having to serve you. Place could use some dusting… Badly.

When my friend set-​up brunch at Nellie’s Café on Kensington I’ll be honest, I wasn’t too excited. I’ve heard some pretty poor things about the Nellie’s «chain» here in Calgary and a quick scan of their reviews seem to support this. Nonetheless, this is the spot my friend picked and the company triumphed over the spot as a good enough reason to go.
Nellie’s is located in a small strip mall/​plaza on Kensington Road that resembles a log cabin and has an outdoorsy/​mountain type feel to it. I’ve always found this strip mall to feel a bit out of place and more so something you’d expect to find in Canmore, Banff and further West. They have limited parking that fills up pretty quick, so there’s a good chance you’ll have to park on the street and pay for parking.
To my surprise it was a full house on my visit, but luckily a booth quickly opened up for us. With my low expectations in mind I couldn’t help but ponder what the draw is to this place that would translate to a full dining room. Inside there isn’t a clear theme, but there are some common trends. I’d describe it best as a breakfast at your grandma’s or that aunt with the old school looking kitchen and dining room. You know, the kind of room that has stuff hung everywhere and nothing is modern, but it has that homey and comfortable feel to it like you’d expect from grandma. There’s plenty of collectible items from the 40s-​50s in here, some oddly painted walls and a chalkboard that they must update occasionally as it mentioned things like «Gluten-​Free» and «Sugar-​Free» for some of their options. None of the dinnerware matched what so ever, they were a variety of colors and some people had plastic cups while others had ceramic. It truly felt like you were having breakfast at someone’s house with an understocked kitchen, so to make it work they pull out all their random serving dishes to ensure everyone has something to eat and drink from lol… I do assume this is intentional and meant to create some sort of an old fashioned dining feel. Even more odd when you consider the log cabin style exterior though.
The menu had a pretty decent selection, but if they were going for old-​fashioned then it ended here because many items didn’t fit with that theme. Rather it was breakfast of all categories including Mexican. The prices were very affordable. I wasn’t really craving anything in particular so I went with the Eggs Benedict as they were one of the featured items. Food came out in good time and it was a good sized plate, but not overwhelming. I was happy with the portion size, side of fruit and dessert muffin that was included on the plate. Also to my surprise the food actually tasted pretty decent, the potatoes are definitely made in large batches, and the fruit and muffin are definitely pre-​prepared and sitting in trays/​bins but they were still decent. As for the Eggs Benedict… it was actually really good! Okay weird… Fair prices, decent food… The service must have sucked right? Nope… It was actually pretty good, they were super quick with refills, took our order accurately and checked-​up on us during breakfast. All in all, it was actually a decent experience.
I came in with extremely low expectations expecting to eat a nasty breakfast and get awful service. Instead I got a decent breakfast and good service at a fair price! I underestimated Nellie’s and shouldn’t have been too quick to judge, my apologies. It’s not a WOW breakfast, but hey it’s decent and I feel like I got my monies worth. Sure their «theme» and décor is a bit odd, but I found myself warming up to it by the end. By the end the place grew on me a bit and I was content with my friend’s choice. Cheers,

Went there for Saturday morning brunch. Ended up waiting more than a half an hour for our meals while the restaurant was not that busy. I asked for over medium poached eggs, but they were way too soft. My meal included fresh fruits which I did not receive, wasn’t worth it anyways, they only gave 2 slices of a grapefruit. The hash browns were burnt on the outside, and still raw on the inside. Just a poor experience overall, would not recommend

#136
Solid 4.5 stars (still no half star option during the review process).
Saturday, 18 April 2015, 1230, busy. The service was a little slow but both the servers we encountered were very nice, patient, if a bit frazzled, but a smile on their face was to be had.
They brought the requested water and coffee and made sure during the entire meal, neither went below half-​full. This, for me, was the sign that this would be a good meal.
Once our server was able to get to our table (again, it was busy and she was working her butt off), the food order was taken quickly. She answered all our questions with a friendly demeanor and explained things clearly.
I got the Bacon Cheddar burger with hash browns which are NOT hash browns but just cut up potatoes (hash browns are shredded and baked/​fried). The burger was of ample size with fresh and ample toppings. The potatoes (they call has browns) were so good. These would make good french fries and probably hash browns (shredded) if they wanted. I will be getting an extra order next time. I was so hungry I didn’t even think about drinks (other than coffee and water) so I forgot to ask if they have any alcohol. That might have been on the menu but I was focus on food (the table on our left had a burger that looked good). It took about 20 minutes for the food but my friend had ordered a breakfast dish with specially cooked egg order (geek). Next time, I will try a breakfast dish.
I like the vibe of the crowd or maybe it’s just how Calgary is.
The location is small and parking is almost always next to impossible (though we got lucky and on a Saturday). I would recommend the LRT (Sunnyside Stationa) which is a 10 minute walk or use the 419 Northbound (Foothills). I cannot remember the other bus that runs down Kensington. Once I see it, I will put it’s number in here as well. You could use car2go since they can park almost anywhere without penalty or a taxi.
I read the other reviews that seemed to indicate a rise and fall and a rise again of the establishment. I didn’t see it so apparently they have righted the ship. Personally, I think the people that run a business feed off their customers and vice versa. Sorta like the FIFO (first in first out) or GIGO (garbage in garbage out (Walmart), great clientele make a great place.
Summary, if you are in a hurry, go pollute yourself at some fast food joint at the mall or somewhere. However, if you want to relax a bit, take a seat here (try to get the window seat, nice scenery walks by quite often).

I went to Nellie’s for the first time since I live in the neighborhood. The service was great and staff were friendly but the food was mediocre! I ordered the Eggs Benedict with smoked salmon. First the potatoes need some help in flavor, something about the seasoning was off. The meal was not very palatable. I was expecting a nice serving of fruit but it was a slice of orange, a piece of melon and 3 grapes or so! I would keep walking and find a more favorable brunch spot!

I went there for Sunday Brunch with friends and family and we were all vey disappointed. The service was slow and the food wasn’t very good. I guess in retrospect that the fact that there wasn’t any wait for a table of six at 10:45am was a sign that the place wasn’t well liked.
I had the BLT and I found it rather lacking in the B and the T and I thought that the potatoes were old and too soft. My friends and family all experienced similar problems with their selections.

Wow… Unfortunately I have to rescind this review :(. Obviously there are new owners or something drastically changed. We ordered the eggs benny medium and they were way past hard, and the hollandaise sauce tasted like sour cream. We also ordered the stuffed French toast. I asked what it was stuffed with and told the lady I am allergic to strawberries she said no problem it’s only blueberries. It came out with blueberries and chunks of red fruit. I just wanted to confirm it was raspberries but she said no it’s just the color blueberries turns to when mixed. Blueberries turn blue or purple, not chunks of bright red. Then she took it away and asked what else I wanted so I ordered the cinnamon bun French toast which came out so soggy and undercooked I barely had 3 bites. She still charged us for the full meals too! She was really nice but pretty poor quality food and definitely not worth another try.

Very fun décor but I won’t be going back because the food is not good and quite expensive considering the quality and quantity.

Came here for brunch with a friend during my 5 day trip to Calgary for the Calgary Stampede. My friend took me here and its neat. I ordered the eggs benedict which they called Nellie’s All-​Day Bennies. You could order it with ham, crab or spinach and when I saw crab I was pretty excited. When it arrived I was a little disappointed because it was actually surimi (imitation crab meat). The benedict was pretty good, the english muffin perfectly toasted, the surimi seared a little bit to give it a slight caramelization, and the hollandaise sauce was delicious. The «bennie’s» were served with hash browns (home fries in the States) and 2 slices of cantaloupe which were incredibly sweet.
The interior decoration of the restaurant was really unique, it looked sort of like a farm house and it was incredibly warm inside that day. Nellie’s has 2 other locations.

I know Nellie’s in general has had its ups and downs as a «brand» in the last few years. This location has always seemed solid to me.
We went here this morning as the one right downtown was closed for renovations. It was busy but nothing too crazy. The service was amazing, with plnety of offers of coffee refills without our having to think about it. Our food order was taken quickly by a super friendly server. Our food arrived in about 10 minutes and was piping hot and fresh. I love that they include a little fruit with each meal to make you feel like you are eating healthy :)
The breakfast burrito (with sausage) is a personal fave of mine while my partner loves the belly buster. I like the variety the menu offers as I can always find something I’ll like no matter how hungry I am or what kind of mood I’m in. It’s also great for kids of all ages.
The place was very clan and tidy. Clearly they have gotten themselves turned around in the last couple of years and are a breakfast place worth checking out again.

I’m sad to see the low rating for Nellie’s. This has been one of my favourite breakfast/​brunch/​lunch spots for years! Especially when I have a hangover. Yes, the service is hit or miss… sometimes they pay more attention to you than other times. And when they are busy, it can be a bit slow. But I don’t let that get in the way of my overall experience, because I’m usually with great company, the food is really good, and the portions are huge. My favourite items to order are the Ukrainian Breakfast, Tuna Melt, Cowboy Chili (mmmm), and the Belly Buster. I like how it comes with a bit of fruit so you feel like you’re at least getting SOME nutrients lol. Its usually fairly busy in the morning so I tend to go around brunch or lunch time and I’ve never really had to wait. I always leave satisfied and full, not to mention my wallet is happy! I will definitely continue eating at Nellie’s.

Tried Nellie’s today to find out if it improved again.
The good: food was tasty, the presentation adequate and the serving size huge
The bad: the table had coffee spills from a previous guest and the condiment bottle as well as the salt/​pepper were sticky. Way to go…

Went for brunch on Sunday morning.
*Staff is AMAZING
*great for families
*yummy food how your mom makes it
just make sure to get there early! Tables fill up fast

Nellie’s received a bad rap over the past year, with various health code violations which forced the local chain to clean up it’s reputation. After a long boycott I gave Nellie’s in Kensington and I’m sorry to say I was not impressed.
The service was friendly and fairly efficient, but that is where the positive statements stop.
My perogies were bland, potatoes not cooked throughout, the fruit on the plate looked weathered… it was just a sub-​par visit.
Quality breakfast establishments in Calgary are few and far between. Next time I’m in the mood for a good breakfast, I’ll be walking by Nellie’s and going elsewhere.

I first tried Nellie’s on Kensington probably in 2004, and not much has changed since then (except for the prices, which have gone up a bit). The décor is a deliberate throwback to the 50s and 60s, what with old LIFE Magazine covers on the wall, and various kitschy baubles from the era installed above the booths on one side, and a gaudy mural of a pastoral scene on the other. It adds up to a quaint charm, but you don’t go to Nellie’s for the décor, it’s their all-​day breakfast that’s the raison d’etre for this joint, and on that count, you’re in for a treat. I can’t comment on the entire menu, because being a creature of habit, every time I stop in I order their Ukrainian «Break the Fast» combo, which includes perogies (boiled or fried, I usually take them boiled) with sour cream on the side, eggs how you like them (I take mine scrambled), Ukrainian kielbasa, hash browns, a small cornbread muffin, and two slices of toast (I always ask for brown bread), garnished with a slice or two of fruit (usually melon, cantaloupe, or grapefruit) when in season. Is it delicious? You bet. It’s also so filling that you can probably skip lunch altogether (I have to because I’m really not hungry for hours afterward). Next time, I might try the Belly Buster, just for a change.

The hunt for ‘Sapna’s favourite local brunch joint’ continues…
I stumbled into this Nellie’s after an evening far too long. I had woken up with a bit of a foggy head and was in need of some serious nourishment.
I was meeting a friend at Nellie’s in Kensington and lucky for me, she had gotten there 45 minutes early and secured us a table. Tip #1: If you’re planning to go to Nellie’s on the weekend, have someone in your group get there early. Wait times can be long and mornings are when some of us are the hungriest.
We were seated near the window but I found the space to be a little cramped. It was packed needless to say.
Our server was pretty good, she checked up on us at perfect times and brought our food relatively quickly.
The food itself was *ALRIGHT*. Nothing to write home about. They had the standard breakfast fare and I opted for the Veggies Benny which was prepared well and tasty.
Overall, Nellie’s on Kensington is a cute place but far from my favourite.
The search continues…

Great place for all day breakfast (although they close at 4). They have everything from your traditional eggs, bacon, hash & toast, to peroggies or cinnamon french toast. Yum. Great heavy foods to break the hangover from last night.
Wait times are off the wall on weekends, anywhere from 20minutes to an hour for a table, and another minus is that you have to wait OUTSIDE, and in Calgary it can get pretty cold. But once your inside, you get the old school café, laid back mix-​matched tablewares and great service with cuploads of always hot coffee.