Skillet Diner - Ballard

What happened? ! We went to the Skillet last evening around 5:30 (for dinner). The only items being served were burgers (veggie and a chicken also). That was it! Did we come at the wrong time for dinner? Can't recommend this place anymore.

Ordered the pot roast. My friend and I shared it. Delicious. !!

I have been to Skillet diner many times and it is good solid upscale diner food. I have to say, though, that for the first time, I noticed that they charge a 5% service that is automatically added to your bill. Your server never says a word about it (on any of the 4 or 5 times I have been there), so I assume it has always been there and I just never noticed it. I'm totally fine with a service charge, I actually prefer when restaurants just straight up charge the 20% that gets distributed to both front and back of house, but I have never had a place where it is charged and the server does not mention it OR there is just no spot for gratuity on the credit card receipt. Then, Skillet puts the various amounts for 15%, 20% tip etc. listed on the bottom as many restaurants do (AFTER tax, I might add, which again, I don't think is appropriate). So, I tipped 20%, then noticed the small print that they had already charged me 5%. Seems a bit unfair that they didn't mention that in the first place. I left my tip as written, but left with a not great feeling about the place.

Skillet was great as always. I got the biscuits and gravy and my partner got the chicken fried steak - both were excellent. Good portion sizes too, as we both had leftovers. Sad they don't have the cinnamon rolls on holidays (it was President's Day).

Overall most of the food and atmosphere of this restaurant are great. I think we struck a never of the hostess however when we had two extra family members join us at the last minute. She passive aggressively paced around us unsure what to do and repeatedly asking if this was going to be everyone but then walking off before we could answer. Eventually we were able to let her know this would be everyone and that we understand reservations and could go somewhere else if she would just communicate with us. Overall, the restaurant was completely empty so our waitress said it wouldn't be a problem. It just set a weird vibe going into dinner, most likely won't be going back.

Good good but I had a 10:30 reservation and had to wait until 11 to be seated. Not cool.

We were seated in the very back of the restaurant in a sterile, charmless alcove between 2-sets of swinging doors into the kitchen and a door to the restroom (despite have a reservation and tables being open in the front part of the restaurant). Chairs were the small, wooden chairs you had in arts and crafts class in elementary school. Not sure what that was about, but they were uncomfortable! Service was not good - it took over 25 minutes and 3 requests to get my drink. I was then brought the wrong salad - my kale slaw salad which was supposed to have pistachios, cherries, fennel, and brussels sprout had -- kale. I later realized they'd probably brought me the kale Caesar. I was not impressed by this restaurant and will not be returning.

I've always enjoyed Skillet for their great brunch selection (can't speak to any other meal time). The Chub or PorkBelly & waffles are our favorites!

I'd recommend using the reservation process for a larger group, however due to the way the hostess is situated in the restaurant, you may end up waiting for a table regardless. We (bf and I) had a restervation at 10:45am-- walked in at 10:35, waited in line to be checked-in, watched 3 walk-in couples ahead of us in line get seated immediately (two at a table, one at the bar). By the time it was our turn in the growing line, (10:51am) the hostess said we'd have to wait for a free table and the bar was full (wait, what?! You just gave 3 settings to walk-ins...) Anyway, we were seated by 11am no biggie since the food is consistently good, the line is always a grab bag at brunch time. *Side note to Staff* figure out the check in system, because it does impact our likelihood to visit.

My husband and I sat at the bar and had dinner at Skillet Diner before a show. It was not crowded at all. The menu was diverse and the food was really good. I had a very tasty lemon drop; would have had another cocktail but the bartender who was serving us never offered one. He was great with food service though. Overall we liked it and would go back when in the neighborhood.

Something to note. There was a 5% gratuity added to the bill for kitchen and reception staff. I don't take issue with the gratuity, but I would have preferred the server to mention it, especially since it could have been easily overlooked.

Great hash!

The cinnamon roll was amazing, and the chilaquiles were quite spicy but very good.

We LOVE the bartender/server....works his BUTT OFF! Fried Chicken Sammich and Hey Girl Heyyy cocktail rock!

The brunch food was good; good for special occasions, but doesn't replace our favorite breakfast spots mostly because it was a little pricey.

No one makes pot roast anymore. Very flavorful good value.

Great food and great service as we have come to expect.

Good place, not great for vegetarians.

The service was really good. Everything including our food arrived on time and our server was exemplary. My friend being vegan, was able to order a delicious meal, which she absolutely enjoyed. Overall we had a great experience.

Excellent macaroni and cheese! Large portions for sharing. Great high chair for baby.

The food was great, as always. They were busy, which I understand since it was the day after Christmas, but the service was disappointing. We made a reservation, but they had not reserved a table for us, so we ended up waiting anyway. Once we were seated, it took longer than usual for our server to greet us. After we received our food, which was delicious, the server dropped off the check without asking if we wanted anything else. We would have ordered another round of drinks, but we felt we were being rushed out. I'm sure I'll eat at Skillet again, but I feel the service has always been better at the Capitol Hill location.

The food was delicious. The service was great. It was easily the best meal we've had in the week we've been in Seattle.

Loved it. They were great with my kids.

We had family brunch here and it was a great choice. It was like being in a family kitchen, so perfect for my noisy toddler. My kid loved the pancakes and all of our dishes were yummy. The service was great and the staff was knowledgeable when asked about nuts for nut allergies.

We have eaten at Skillet Diner in Ballard many times, and the food is always great. However, this time, even though we had a reservation, we were seated at a table in full, bright sunlight. It was very hot after awhile, and hard on the eyes, to say the least! Our server, while cordial, seemed very distracted and slow (we've had great service in the past). Not our best experience at this location, but we will definitely return.

A group of us were there for brunch and ordered a variety of items from their breakfast menu. The food was well-prepared overall, but nothing extraordinary. Service was excellent and courteous.

This was the third time we visited the Skillet Diner, despite being unimpressed the first two times, we decided to give it another go to see if it was just bad luck and hoping the third time would be a charm. Unfortunately we were disappointed. From the time we arrived and were seated at a table in a direct draft, with glasses from the previous diners, to the cold food, poor, delayed service and frankly inattentive servers, I would entirely recommend people stay clear from here and go eat elsewhere. I ate here when 9 months pregnant (which is pretty obvious!) and despite requesting well cooked burger, the burger arrived very pink. When I requested it be returned due to my pregnancy, the server was clearly irritated and then left me waiting for 20 mins to replace my food - particularly irritating when I could see it literally sitting in the serving hatch for at least 10 mins!! Needless to say, we're not heeding back!

Ordered a "basic burger" and got " the burger" instead. Tasted good, was $1 more expensive on the menu, but I still received something I didn't order. I was pressed for time and didn't have them remake my order. It wasn't busy that night so it was just being careless. My receipt verified that the server rang up the correct burger. Kitchen made wrong one. Server or expeditor didn't catch the mistake and it ended up on my table.

The cheesy grits and deep fried rockfish! Def my fave - it was such a good lunch date with my friends. The redhead guy was our server - wish I knew his name! He was the best!!!

I want to love this place, but it's just okay. We went for dinner. The chicharrones appetizer had a few really gamey bites. The Kale Caesar was so salty it was inedible and we had to send it back. The server was nice, but we waited a long time for drinks. I've been twice and don't need to go back with so many options in Ballard.

Food was exceptional! Pork chop juicy and cooked to perfection. Chopped veggie medley tender crumchy and complementary.

Everything was great except the noise level was a bit too loud even though restaurant wasn't very busy

The fries tasted old (like they had been sitting out of the fryer for a few hours then reheated), the chicken was very overcooked and dry and practically inedible.

I was really impressed by this tasty restaurant. We made a Sunday morning brunch reservation and was glad we did--we had to wait about 5 minutes while they cleared the table, but that was much shorter than most waited without a reservation. The service was prompt and attentive (although not too attentive), food was yummy and was well paced (we had doughnut holes before main dishes) and it was a great and comfortable atmosphere.

This place is huge which makes it easier to get table for brunch. Good food

We had a weekend dinner with our daughter and friends at Skillet last weekend. The girls really wanted fried chicken and we had heard that Skillet had a great option. The service was terrific, the drinks great but the food was not. Everything was overly seasoned and so heavily coated you could not taste the main ingredient in the dish. As an example, the sweet corn was barely discernible under the large amount of spice, cheese, other toppings. The chicken was heavily fried with thick coating, completely overwhelming the actual taste of chicken. I have read and heard much better reviews of the food at Skillet so am hoping this was an off night in the kitchen. Unfortunately with so many other options in the area, we are probably going to pass on trying this one again.

Skillet never fails to provide an outstanding meal. We bring all out of town guests to the Ballard location and there is always something for everyone. My husband is vegetarian and I eat Paleo and we both get an equally satisfying and delicious meal with many options to choose from. And they do a great job catering to kids and families too. We love Skillet!!!

The food wasn't great. The service wasn't bad, just nothing to brag about. Took quite a while to get our drinks, we actually got out appetizers first. I doubt I'll go back.

Restaurant Week- blah. Nothing great. Service ok. Disappointed as always wanted to try. Not best first impression. Par for restaurant week I guess. :( maybe try breakfast next time.

Went for my birthday brunch with a group of friends, we had a reservation but the place was packed so we had to wait half an hour for our table. Once seated food came pretty quickly and was delicious. Try the cold brew cocktail it's amazing!

My two friends and I had to shout to hear each other - and had to ask the wait staff to repeat themselves. you'd think they would understand how noisy the place is and make the effort to be heard. the food was okay, but not so good that we'll be rushing back. in fact, all three of us left food on our plates - it was all starch that none of us wanted or needed to eat, but that they were happy to stretch the meal with.