John’s Drive-In

Friendly customer service. good ice cream on a fresh waffle cone. just minutes away from the montauk light house… good to drop by before heading back.
–a happy Texan

Bring cash and a desire for ice cream!
This place looks like they built it in the 50s, remodeled in the 80s, and have kept the «don’t fix it if it ain’t broke» spirit running the shop since then. And in almost all areas, that’s a good thing.
The only place they’re not totally acing is taste. The ice cream is great, but the main fares only qualify as good. The burgers, fries, etc are perfectly… good. If they find a way to up the menu quality, this place would go from good to fantastic. Then again, that would probably up the price — a major selling point. Hmm.
Anyway, it’s definitely a classic burger joint — one that really nails the small Long Island beach town ideal, and will leave you summer satisfied.

The food is overpriced and mediocre. Last time I went there it was empty when I walked in, but filled up after I placed my order. It took them 20 minutes to prepare a cheeseburger and fish n chips, and the fish was overcooked. If you’re going to overpay for food, might as well pay a little more and get something better. The 2 stars are for the employees– very friendly even if they are slow.

Turkey burger is juicy and so tasty! And I thought it was going to taste just healthy! Cute joint! Definitely be back.

Ice cream on point!
We tried the cherry pistachio and the rocky road and they were pretty good

Mediocre food which is expected for a fast food drive in. Homemade shakes are quite pricey but perfect consistency. Shared chicken fingers with my friend and got a coffee thick shake and was very satisfied. Burgers looks yummy so did seasoned fries. Wish it was a little less pricey, also note they do not accept credit or debit.

This is a diner. The food is a bit overpriced, like all of MTK. Ice cream soft serve was not presented well and for 3.50 a small cone you would think it would be better. Nothing else looked appetizing.

Ice cream. Yes!
Food, not so much.
Good for families and a quick a little better than fast food meal. FYI lots of kids here.
Black bean burger for vegetarians so they get some points for something a little better than a frozen veggie burger patty.
Turkey burger tastes weird. Like too much rosemary extract or thyme or something.
Fries are just ok.
Cash only.
They seem to always be busy. Even in off season.
The staff is usually friendly enough but recently I had a not so good interaction w/​an employee — an older man. A customer took our food by accident and then returned it. I was concerned a stranger was touching my food so I asked for it to be remade and the older man yelled at me that he’d remake it if I wanted. I said yes please but then he went on an on, got nasty w/​me, and raised his voice. I felt bullied into taking the food.
Sticking w/​the ice cream only for the future.

This was totally a munchies trip. Totally wanted fries and couldn’t resist the interesting homemade ice cream flavors. I got small order of seasoned fries and coffee oreo scoop. Fries were good. Ice cream was good. Fresh and not too sweet. Good stuff.

We ordered burgers and fries. All were tasty and cooked perfectly. Cheap eats if you want to save some $$$.

I suppose that if you come off season you are able to say that this is like a «mom and pop mcds» in a good way. I wasn’t expecting much given the mixed reviews below — during high season — but I had a lovely time here.
Most of the town is shutdown. We were desperately hungry after visiting the lighthouse. Our first 2 choices were closed. I think we could say that the third time is the charm and that’s coming from someone who is simply unable to be charming when hungry.
We came in and were greeted with a warm and welcoming «Hi» from the lady at the register. She was incredibly nice. I could not say sh*t about this place even if I wanted to because of her. The rest of the staff was very nice too.
It’s CASH ONLY — so is most of the town tho.
I had the cheeseburger and large fries. Both tasted like a version of homemade mcds to me, so I could not complain. My cheeseburger was simple. Crisp pickles, a little onion, ketchup + fresh patty & American cheese.
The gent, however, had a 5-​star experience without doubt. He ordered a double cheeseburger AND a Big John burger. The staff was amused. He was famished and still managed room for dessert.
We had the coffee Oreo ice cream and mocha almond fudge. He made sure to tell the lady of our love for cookie crunch which resulted in the most generous topping of cookie crunch that I’ve ever had in my life. I cannot vouch for the deliciousness of the ice cream because I was too happy about the cookie crunch… but I hope that you have a nice experience here too. OMG cookie crunch 4 life.

We came in for dessert after dinner next door, and was pleasantly surprised by the mom and pop feel of this ice cream parlor/​diner. We got the small vanilla soft serve ($ 3.51) and a scoop of homemade cherry pistachio ice cream ($ 3.48), both were yummy, but nothing too special. The available flavors are posted on the wall to the right, which was a little weird because you have to look at the ice cream in the display and then back to the wall to guess which flavor is which.

Came here for late lunch/​dinner (linner?) lol… The place is comfortable, and seems like a nice burger joint in the summer when people come out to the beach (we came in February). I ordered a burger with bacon and cheese, with fries on the side. My friend got a regular burger. The food was fine and it was just what we needed since we hardly had food to eat. However, when we got there they were out of soft drinks/​soda and when my friend asked for water all she got was a small plastic cup of water. The people working there are nice, and I don’t know why they ran out of soda/​drinks– I suppose those things happen. I also wish they’d accept debit/​credit cards– heads up: cash only! I’m sure that had those two things not been the case I’d have rated it 4 or 5 stars.

The words from another Unilocaler, Tracy K. reverberated in my head when I stopped in here the other night — «They’re just not fun here.». Between the sign warning «ANYONE STANDING IN LINE ON A CELL PHONE WILL NOT BE SERVED», the grungy environment, the overpriced mediocre ice cream and being barked at «WHO’S NEXT?» without a smile in sight from the servers here I really must agree with her observation.
Perhaps I usually get here at the end of the high season and at night when they run out of flavors and everything looks a little worse for the wear. Whatever the case, you got me two times. there won’t be a third.

This place definitely holds the monopoly on burgers and ice cream in the area. Wonderful selection of flavors including multiple coffee flavors.
I’m withholding a two star because the line was insane and for some reason the coffee Heath bar didn’t have any Heath bar in it — coffee Oreo with sprinkles wasn’t a bad substitute though! Definitely worth the wait for some solid ice cream.

Recommended as best ice cream in Montauk. Another establishment where employees stand behind the counter doing nothing while one or 2 busily try to help customers. It is August and you would think they had their act together, but the guy who may have been the manager thought it was more important to finish whatever was on his clipboard then to help customers. It was not until 6 people came in the door at once that he felt like it was time to take action. The Oreo coffee was pretty good but not great experience.

Overpriced food but not the usual montauk overpriced, like McDonald’s level or lower — fried chicken that resembles and probably tastes like old sponge — 4 pieces for $ 8… total rip off, I’m not staying for ice cream — too annoyed — why the line for this is out the door I have no earthly idea… save your money unless your coming for ice cream only…

The ice cream is delicious! Everything else is mediocre. Expensive. The place is dirty, the staff not friendly, only cash, much wasted space, ordering is confusing, not enough garbage cans outside, outdoor seating on the side is dark and towards the back, very smelly. Place could become so much more pleasant than it is if management paid attention to details and cared about customers.

First off, this is not a drive-​in. It’s a park your car, walk in and empty your wallet in. Parking is limited, about four spots on the side and then minimal street parking as this area of town is generally always busy. They had some tables outside and inside. The area to order was confusing. There was a line, but no «pick up» counter, so after you placed your order, you still stood in place, while the person behind the counter was saying, «Next» to the people behind you. It was a big cluster. I saw a list of flavors on the back wall, TONS of ice cream choices. They had pistachio, which I don’t recommend, it tasted like a cheap version of mint chocolate chip and really couldn’t identify any pistachio flavor. They had coffee, kaluha chip, banana fudge, chocolate peanut butter, oreo, pineapple coconut, strawberry oreo, chocolate oreo fudge, butter pecan, rum raisin, vanilla almond swiss and some others. I didn’t realize they had frozen yogurt but I noticed it soon after ordering and they had espresso flavored fro yo. We ordered a small espresso cone and a small pistachio cone. How much do you think that should come to? The cone took me about five licks and three cone bites to finish and it came to $ 11 bucks!!! The espresso flavored frozen yogurt was simply amazing, I mean so smooth and delicious but way way WAY over priced even in a vacation beach town. They had other food such as fries, burgers and hot dogs, also very overpriced. The inside is SO casual, its like a place you walk up to at the beach so I couldn’t see the justification for spending that kind of money.

Bangin’ ice cream. I got a large cup with banana oreo and coffee oreo. Boyfriend got a large cup of mint chip and butter pecan. Being the ice cream connoisseur that I am, I have to say this is quality stuff. The coffee oreo especially was orgasmic.

Decent ice cream spot in Montauk. I felt bad showing up 20 minutes until closing but that didn’t stop the other 50 people in line.
The staff here was quick and turned out our treats quickly.
The place seems like a cool lunch spot as well.

Went in with a group of 10 and spent $ 50. The workers were rude and arrogant. Wouldn’t even let us use the bathroom.
We arrived 1 hour before closing time and the staff was ready to leave-didn’t want to be there– we were annoying them. They had already turned off most of the machines in the store.
Id never spend another nickel at this place. As a matter of fact, the following day, walked past their other store next to the beach and advised our group of friends not to buy a thing.

Fun local spot for burgers, dogs, and ice cream. A bit overpriced for the type of fare they were serving ($ 4.79 for a small ice cream), but it was very tasty. I had the vanilla ginger and my wife enjoyed a tasty chocolate shake, while we snacked on a hot dog and fries. Casual booths to sit in, TV playing ESPN… a good «I need 30 minutes indoors before getting back on the beach» kind of joint.
I’d probably come back to try more ice cream flavors, looks like they have a nice range of options! Lower prices and I’d be a much happier camper, but such is the Hamptons apparently!

I bought a fishwich, double cheeseburger, and an ice cream cone.
Fishwich: okay… not the best thing in the world nor the worse.
Double cheeseburger: tasted like a mcdonalds cheeseburger except they charge the same price of a meal but only give you the burger
Ice cream: I liked the ice cream but my boyfriend said it does not taste homemade
Tips: bring cash and only get the soft serve ice cream

I don’t know which was worse: the smell of burnt oil, the blaring screamo music, or the fact that the two cashiers ignored us even though we were the only people at the counter.
Seriously what is happening in this place? We just wanted some ice cream to end our lovely Montauk day!
Do not go here. Do not listen to any positive reviews. This post may sound dramatic but it is not worth taking the chance.
If it’s any validation, this is my first ever Unilocal post. It was so bad that I felt like I had to come on here to prevent other people from ruining their nice beach day.

Best burgers in MTK –yes
Best burgers within a 15 mile radius-​no
Compared to the $ 20 burgers you find in the area, I’d get the big John burger because the regular one looks like a kids size from McDonald’s this place is mediocre at best. Cash only. Cashiers look annoyed when your trying to decipher the extensive menu board. Defiantly over priced but hey it’s MTK right? I just expect more than a squished together burger with bits of lettuce.

Nothing special in my opinion. Went in for ice cream, I got the homemade chocolate chocolate chip. Family members got soft serve chocolate and vanilla, and a brownie sundae. Nothing was outstanding. The brownies actually didn’t taste that great.
To top it all off, the place is pretty dirty…

No trip to Montauk is complete without getting John’s ice cream. Their soft serve with sprinkles is everything.
It’s not the cheapest ice cream but you do get a lot for what you pay for — in taste, amount, and tradition.
I’ve never had poor service like people have reviewed — I have only ordered my ice cream, paid, smiled and said thank you while anxiously waiting to dig in.

I only ever come here for ice cream and its pretty good. The service is quick and its not too expensive. However. the staff can be pretty rude sometimes and don’t seem to give a f** about customer service.
For example, once i went there and got an ice cream cone and a water. Since i had been walking my dogs I asked the woman if I can have a plastic ice cream bowl for my dogs water. she looked me in the eye and was like «Um we don’t just give those out, maybe you can buy it»… Really you can’t give a customer an extra plastic bowl?! Those things cost them like 5 cents each!
I still go to John’s often though because its convenient and the ice cream is good, just don’t expect bubbly polite employees!
Also Cash Only! (like a lot of places in montauk)

Cookies and cream super thick malted shake. So good.

EXTREMELY rude staff.
I didnt understand what one of the ladies were saying and they kept repeating and looking at the other customer with a smirk laughing at me because I didnt understand her slobbish drunk ish accent.
I came back later in the day to see if the later staff were nicer and I was lookin for singles to pay with and she was getting impatient and I was the ONLY customer in the resturaunt and she kept looking at her other staff giving them a face.
never comming back here again!!!

Cash Only — So take out some cash before you get there or you can use their conveniently located ATM.
When you get past the urge to put your ice cream on your card… you then join the line and read all of the boards with the many amazingly wonderful and tasty options you have. Seriously, there’s NOT enough time!
My husband and I shared a Homemade chocolate shake (which was extra thick and creamy, says the inner lard in me)…it was like $ 7 …
It was so YUMMMMMMMMY it was so good… it was just amazing. NOT too sweet, not heavy, but it was addicting as if there was something extra sinful in it.
I am happy this is at the end of the Island opposed to being in my neighborhood because I would be the size of Montana!!!
A must see place in Montauk.