My wife and I have been clamoring for more breakfast spots out here in Mount Juliet for years. The population here east of Nashville seems to grow and grow every year. It kind of sucks, actually – can’t get anywhere in this town without fighting some traffic and assholes that drive too fast. But, that’s a different rabbit hole for a different day. My point is that there’s a lot of people in Mount Juliet these days. We’ve done a fair enough job of finding spots that seem to have slipped through the cracks of the masses…where we can get a decent meal without having to wait 45 minutes for a table. But, that isn’t the case with the limited breakfast options in town. It’s been Cracker Barrel, Waffle House, Panera, or Ihop for awhile now.
That’s why we were stoked to see Keke’s Breakfast Cafe open up recently. We let the opening rush die down a bit, and went out a couple of weeks or so after they had opened. I was still prepared for a line, but there wasn’t one, to my surprise! I was expecting some trendy upscale spot, but when we walked in, I was delighted to see an ordinary diner style restaurant. I looked it up and realized it’s a chain owned by the people who run Denny’s. That was the light bulb going off – I got it then. I went with a chicken fajita omelet with a side of grits. My wife got the cinnamon apple waffles. For more on Keke’s Breakfast Cafe, check out their website here.
Photos
Ratings
Food: 6.214/10 – Good classic grits. A chicken fajita omelet that was fresh. Splashed with hot sauce, the flavor popped. The show-stealer for me was the cinnamon apple waffle that my wife got though. It tasted like a big hearty scoop of Cracker Barrel’s baked apples on top of a waffle. The bacon added some salty to the sweet and I was kicking myself for not ordering it myself. This was good diner style food! It wasn’t some fancy brunch menu. It wasn’t just bagels and biscuits. It’s like Keke’s cares more about providing a classic breakfast menu than being trendy, and I tip my cap to them for it. And, I’m the type that always eats the orange slice on a breakfast plate.
Value: 7.387/10 – Honestly, it was the best part of the whole experience to pick that check up for two entrees and two coffees and see it hit around $35 (I don’t remember – don’t be mad at me). A couple can’t eat anywhere for less than $50 these days, but Keke’s was a nice reprieve. I’m still going to be shaking my fist at the sky over high prices though.
Atmosphere: 5/10 – It really does feel like a nicer and cleaner Denny’s. I mean, I haven’t been to a Denny’s in 16 years, but it’s a step up from that experience, for sure. We lucked out getting there at 8AM before the rush really hit. We were seated right away, and the service was excellent. We went during that heatwave when it got so hot that people just didn’t leave their house, so I’m not sure if this was reflective of the usual Sunday morning rush or not. It is very much ‘par for the course’ in terms of the atmosphere.
Overall: 6.2003/10 – Man, this is exactly what Mount Juliet needs more of…good diner-esque food at reasonable prices. Let’s go.
CURRENT MOUNT JULIET RESTAURANT RANKINGS
- ML Rose (8.19/10)
- Memo’s Mexican Kitchen (8.15/10)
- Hibachi Jr. (7.75/10)
- The Papermill (7.35/10)
- Smiley Thai and Sushi (7.25/10)
Stoney Keeley is the Editor in Chief of The SoBros Network, second on Football & Other F Words, analyst for Stacking The Inbox, and a Dogs Playing Poker on velvet connoisseur. He is a strong supporter of Team GSD, #BeBetter, and ‘Minds right, asses tight.’ “Big Natural” covers the Tennessee Titans, the NFL Draft, Nashville, Yankee Candle, and a whole wealth of nonsense. Follow on Twitter @StoneyKeeley.
Elsewhere on the SoBros Network: Check out Stacking The Inbox for premium coverage of the Tennessee Titans and NFL Draft. Subscribe to Nashville Movie Dispatch for all of our movie content. We get weird on Phone It In, the history podcast that explores legendary tales, important historical figures, and events.
