Banner Elk Cafe & Tavern

On a quick get away, stopped for lunch. Burgers were just what the doctor ordered. Extensive menu, breakfast menu looks outstanding. There's a barista with specialty coffees and expresso. Yummy!!! Good local brews on tap. Shout out to our very attentive bartenders, Sarah Joe and Alex.

We had a nice lunch here while passing through Banner Elk. We came after the lunch rush and had no issues with service. I think they probably get busy during ski season. There is some parking on site, but we parked in a municipal lot across the street. One unique thing was we were given 2 menus for separate kitchens that serve Italian and American fare. We were warned that if we ordered from different menus, our food might not come out together. We just wanted sandwiches so it was fine. The portions were big, I needed a to go box for my sandwich.

STOP HERE for top tier service. Simplicity, thy name is not the Banner Elk Cafe There are two menus - Italian and American. Not sure why. There is something for everyone and they actually make a wide range of dishes well. The Chicken Florentine was fantastic. Loads of Bruschetta and delicious shrimp. So many choices! The servers were welcoming and did a solid job.

Such an interesting spot where you can order from two different menus (American and Italian). I was in town as part of my quest to visit all 100 counties, and I had the pinto bean special. My server Luke was great and the food tasted so homemade. The prices were quite reasonable. Would definitely come back.

We stopped here today with 20 motorcycle riders and they were amazingly accommodating. Thankfully they have lots of seating and great staff. The food was also excellent, get the dessert!!! Lots of variety on the menu and very reasonable prices. Highly recommend.

A nice place and in tune with the environment and the mountain location. 2 menus , one american one with Italin dishes so plenty of choices including pizzas . Not quiet but not too loud either. If you are a traveler this is a good place to stop and eat

The food was amazing. The waitress was nice and friendly and checked in on us frequently. Everything was like a home cooked meal. Definitely recommend.

So you know barbecue is my thing. I usually go to the pedal and pig when i'm in the banner.Elk area, but on this occasion, I had my wife with me and decided we would go somewhere a little nicer where we could get out and walk around after the meal. I can't say enough.Good stuff about the food we ate there twice in the course of three days. Service was outstanding, one day and better than average.On the other. The thing that impressed me the most was the fairness in their pricing for the quantity and quality of food provided. If you followed me for a while, you know, i'm kind of picky and this place gets great reviews from me.They earned it.Don't disappoint yourself.Give them a try

Our unexpected/random date night found us dining at the Banner Elk Cafe... Live music, great food and drinks, and the best server. Maximilian (Max) was awesome very helpful and always had a smile... he never said no, and went above and beyond to make our night awesome!! We highly recommend the Cafe, eating outside and try the delicious desserts.

This was undoubtedly one of the worst dining experiences I've had on every level. The food was terrible, the service (while friendly and chipper) was shockingly terrible. Some details: -Grilled Cheese: How to you make a bad grilled cheese? Here's how: uncooked on one side, cold and withered, as if it had been cooked 20 minutes and waited around getting soggy and flappy, before being served.. -Cheeseburger well-done: beyond well-done, charred so black and also cold and served with nothing - no lettuce, no pickles, no onion, no tomato - nothing. - After precariously perching the serving tray, our hapless (but sweet) server dumped half our table's meals on the floor and so half our table had our meals (which were cold) and the other half waited for fresh food, which took another 10 minutes and so by the time half of us had finished, the other half were just digging in. BTW, we had already been waiting for about 30 - 45 minutes, which seems like a long time for pub food. All in all, we were there for 2 hours, to eat a few cheeseburgers and fries. Here's the deal: If there are this many mistakes, money should be knocked off the bill - this didn't happen so I spent $40 on a cold, old grilled cheese and a burnt hockey-puck of a burger and a slice of cake. Thankfully the overpriced carrot cake was moist and tasty. Luckily, the terrible food and service didn't make us angry, but because we like to look on the bright side: it's a great story of a terrible dining experience. Upon returning home, we learned our friends had ordered take-out and every order was incorrect. And the kicker: the waitstaff, absent in the dining room, were clustered in the lobby, sitting on the chairs meant for patrons and scrolling tiktok...while all around the them, hungry diners wondered where the servers and food were.... AVOID this eatery if possible.

I would avoid if I were you. We waited an hour for our food. We ordered a chicken wrap, cheeseburger, trout, and corned beef and cabbage. Absolutely do not order the corned beef. It's not corned beef. It was deli meat that was chopped up and tossed with some cooked cabbage. Definitely not what any one would expect when they order corned beef. The chicken in the wrap and the fries were barely warm. Cheeseburger was only warm and did not come the way it was listed in the menu. Trout was bland and again just warm. This place has multiple menus but that is honestly not a pro for this place. Friendly staff but that can only go so far.

Not what you expect from a "Cafe". It's so much better!! This place literally has a little bit of everything from burgers to pizza. The bruschetta was probably one of the best I've ever had! It's not your usual bread topped off. It comes with all the good in a bowl to self serve and it was the perfect ratio especially with the amount of cheese. I modified a chicken sandwich into a wrap and it was so good! Fresh and delicious. The wrap itself wasn't your basic wrap bread, it was the kind they serve with gyros, which is softer and fluffier. Yum! The staff were so nice and the service was great! Great for a quick bite!

Have you ever been to a place that has four menus? What about a coffee shop, a tavern, and a restaurant as three different sections? What about a one-person restroom? I shouldn't have brought that up? Doesn't mix with food talk? Okay.... My bad! Have you ever heard of a bomblette? If you answered yes to all those questions, then you might have been to Banner Elk Cafe. Banner Elk has a population of 1800, and I would guess at least 1,789 are not living in poverty. It's an interesting place and pretty laidback. As far as the Banner Elk Cafe itself... The seating options are excellent: Inside, outside, inside/outside, bar. The atmosphere is an easy W. And while the salad was good, and the burger and bomblette were reportedly good, it's not really a place to order Chicken Parm. It was decent as was the pasta but the bread might have been worst I ever tasted. I love bread! But I could only do half a bite, which I secretly spit out. There was an army of servers. Some were polite and friendly, others were not. Imo, it's not that hard to say hi or hey or nod. That said, it's probably not their fault due to dealing with some rude customers, which then makes them think you might be the same way (not the case). The prices here are excellent, especially for Banner Elk. Side Note: You can bring your dog. I was forced to do this for the first time ever because my son and I were heading home after lunch and it was on the way. It was awkward but Lulu (big black female lab that loves everyone) laid down and chilled the whole time. I think she just liked the sound of people. Cool for a one-time thing but I'm not a bring-your-dog-to-restaurant guy. Banner Elk Cafe is for the atmosphere and vibe more than anything. As for food, it's probably in the middle of the pack. Then again, I have limited experience at Banner Elk dining.

Apparently, they are shortstaffed because they had multiple tables available, but still we had a 20 minute wait. After being seated, it was about five minutes before anyone came to our table. Our waitress was nice but didn't seem to have any waitress experience. It was odd that she had to go take a picture of the bar taps and then come back and show us. And she said something strange like she did us a favor for getting us the picture. While we're waiting for the food, I started reading yelp reviews on this place and I read a review that was similar to what I just said. The reviewer said they were told to go take a picture of the taps and then tell the waitress what they wanted. Could've been the same waitress. Now onto the food. My daughter and I got the pizza. Although it was tasty, there were some issues. The bottom was totally soggy. You pick up a piece and it would just fold in half. Too much cheese I think. Also one side of the pizza was loaded with sauce And the other had very little. Personally, I like very little. My dad got a house salad which consisted of spinach lettuce, and two small slices of tomato. Nothing else. And he said the blue cheese was not good. I saw it and it was creamy like ranch. No blue cheese chunks at all. I saw a lot of other food coming out and it looked decent. Maybe we just made bad choices. But I'm not interested in going back to find out.

We stopped here today with 20 motorcycle riders and they were amazingly accommodating. Thankfully they have lots of seating and great staff. The food was also excellent, get the dessert!!! Lots of variety on the menu and very reasonable prices. Highly recommend.

Such a cute location. We had just entered town after traveling a few hours and so glad we did. They have a sweet fireplace along with awesome food of course. What was not pictured was the balsamic glazed cheese flatbread with diced tomato's on top... SO GOOD... Service was great as well! We will be back ! :)

This is a very casual place with a warm mountain feel. The food is as you would expect for such a place. The dessert case looks amazing, but I've not yet indulged. The best feature was the service. Our server, Anna, was particularly cheerful and down to earth. We'll be back!

Holly is an outstanding server. She is knowledgeable and checked with us frequently to be sure our drinks and food were to our liking. The banner Elk Cafe makes great blue margaritas and you will not be disappointed in their burgers and curly fries.

Awesome restaurant!! I'm giving this review a 5 Star because of an employee who did an outstanding job during our visit. Jeannine was the best server we've had the pleasure of meeting in a very long time. If I could give a 10 Star review she would get that. The food was awesome, perfectly prepared and everyone got their meal at the same time. Service was impeccable. We were unfortunately seated in an area of the restaurant that is set up for larger groups of 6 or more. I won't let the extremely negative experience with the crowd of 16 next to us deter my review score. There are people in our society that should not go out in public and show their ignorance and total disrespect to others. Pompous, entitled and arrogant individuals. They was disgusting. Shame on you. I can't speak highly enough of Jeannine and the Banner Elk cafe in this review. Extremely well done. Terry

Came here for brunch on Sunday and Anna was phenomenal! So attentive and kind! Biscuits were amazing!

What great service! Very friendly helpful prompt staff. I love a good croissant. This is unique with honey mustard & some thick slices of Turkey. There are lots of choices on the menu and 2 different kitchens to choose from; American and Italian. Breakfast, dinner and supper. Do you call it lunch? Me too.....sometimes but here dinner seems appropriate. The atmosphere feels like a small mountain town. It's lively but quiet. This has the feel of a locals-like -it too grub hub. I'll be taking some of this home. Big helping!

The website says open til 12, we got there at 10:58 and were told breakfast stops at 11 and the kitchen just called to end breakfast. I asked the hostess to ask if the kitchen would accept us and she REFUSED to ask even after showing her the time. She was unhelpful so say the least.

Sara Jo took very good care of us. The food came out promptly and was cooked properly.

My husband and I came here on a whim just to get a little snack. We ended up getting the bruschetta and hot wings to-go. The service was fantastic! The vibe of the restaurant was nice, too. The food was amazing - the appetizers were just what we needed to give us energy to explore the mountains.

We had a large family group stop by for lunch on July 10th. We had 7 adults and 8 children, ages 3-12. Anna was our server and she did an excellent job of keeping all of our orders straight and serving our food in a timely manner. We mostly had a variety of pizzas and sandwiches, and a couple of appetizers for the hungry kids. The food was good, the beer and lattes were tasty, and the atmosphere was laid back, like a good tavern should be. I would highly recommend this tavern to friends and family.

We ordered the Carbonara Chicken Pasta which was recommended to us as our waitresses favorite pasta dish. Well turns out it's 70% bacon & red onion, 10% chicken & 20% noodles. After about 8-10 bites the pic shows what's left. It also didn't have much sauce. We ended up asking our waitress if we could get more sauce and noodles to go with our plate of toppings and she said no. That we would need to order it and pay extra. Even though we made it obvious it was lacking noodles and sauce. Savannah, maybe try to accommodate guests a little better if they don't like their food. Other than the food and shotty service the restaurant itself is actually nice presentation wise. Has a log cabin feel inside the bar area, little outdoor area out back. I'm sure for beers and appetizers it's probably a good spot.

Great food, excellent service and good drinks! We came for Tuesday night Trivia and had a blast!

Food was great! I ordered an omelette, and sometimes omelette are mainly eggs and no filling, but this one was loaded with cheese and ham. Our server, Olivia, was so kind! One of our kids had an opposite stomach and Olivia brought her a Sprite and some crackers. They also had coloring sheets for our kids, which is always nice. Definitely recommend!

Very difficult to review this place. On our recent ski trip to Sugar Mnt we ate at Banner Elk Cafe twice. The first visit was for breakfast and it was a pretty horrid experience. We were sat at a table upon entering but twenty minutes later we had not been visited by a server. I finally had to ask for a server and one came over looking very flustered and overwhelmed (this was around 10:15 am and the cafe was NOT busy at this time). The server took our drink orders and disappeared for twenty more minutes. Finally she brought the drinks back and we ordered just before breakfast ended. Another thirty minutes goes by and she finally returns with soggy french toast and bland eggs and sausage. I had to repeatedly ask for drink refills, utensils, and condiments and each time she would disappear again for 10-15 minutes. We noticed that several other tables were frustrated with the service as well. So breakfast was a complete bust - less than 1 star. However, we had seen good reviews on their pizza so we tried the Cafe the following day after skiing. On this visit the young waitress was very nice (though pretty clueless - she told me to walk to the bar to see what's on tap and couldn't find a pie server for our pizza or parmesan cheese). The bartender was very nice and extremely helpful. The beer selection is decent with local drafts and the pizza was delicious! We got the meat extravagance and the pesto based hawaiian and both were excellent. So, to wrap it up, maybe skip breakfast here (you aren't missing anything and the day staff seemed incompetent) but hit up this cafe if you're looking for good brews and excellent pizza.

Stop by last night to grab a bite. One of the locals recommended this place so we gave it a try. I ordered the whiskey, bourbon peppercorn filet mignon and my husband ordered the chimichurri sirloin. Well needless to say the waiter came out and says to me you are going to be mad at me and then told me I saw your food back there but when he went to retrieve our meals that were ordered then says that someone else got your food and wait it gets better. The waiter says it was the last one. So he then says what else would you like a ribeye. I said it is a different cut of meat. The reason I order filet is I do not like fat. Plus I like a tender cut of meat. So the waiter asked what do you want to ordered. At this point nothing because now you late letting my husband food get cold. Well the service was not so pleasant with my husband had to chase him down for his Diet Coke to be refilled. At the end my husband asked for a check. So I took the bill and couldn't believe my eyes. They had still charged me for food that they gave to someone else. Now we have to find a manager. Well that was a joke too. Finally when the young female manager comes over I explained what happened. She was not comprehensive of what the situation was. Needless to say we went back and forth and finally they took it off. So I handed the young lady a 100 dollar bill. Takes her almost 5 minutes to bring the change back. When I get my change back they still charged me for the invisible meal that they don't know how another customer got it. Now we have to chase the manager down again to let her know you gave us the wrong change back. I know that this place is poorly structured. We can definitely say this place will not get another chance and we will not be back.

What a cute place to grab a coffee! We came during the New Year's holiday and could tell it was a great place by the amount of people stopping in to have a meal or even a coffee. We would've loved to eat in but we just stopped in for a to-go cup of coffee to try and warm up. They had a variety of flavors available even though they were out of peppermint, but that was okay since the butterscotch flavoring was delicious. For as busy as it was, the staff were still friendly and managed to keep a smile. The only reason I didn't give 5 stars was because it was a little hard to find. You have to walk through the restaurant.

I really liked the outdoor seating area. I did see the inside when I used the restroom, and it too had a cool mountain vibe. That is about where the good ends. We ate there for breakfast. The hasbrowns were cold. The eggs were rubbery. I really couldn't eat much of the breakfast. I had to force down what I could for the hike ahead. The worst offender was the coffee. I asked for it to not be too sweet/ lightly sweetened. My late tasted like the Koolaid we made as kids with a cup of sugar to a pint of mix. Seriously, if I drank that coffee, I'd end up in a diabetic coma and I'm not a diabetic. Nothing was done to make it right. There was no offer to remake it. The waitress just took the drink away to wipe the charge off because I guess if she thought I was going to drink it if it stayed at the table. Definitely not the case. This experience was a shame given the location and vibe.

Had to wait awhile to be seated The grits and bacon were delicious Western Omelette was not good, egg was dry, not enough cheese way too many onions. Scrabbled eggs with cheese- dry no taste It's was a little chilly inside the dining area.

Table Service was excellent- Faith Elizabeth was best server we ever had there. Hostess was ok but waited 20 minutes for a table and there were 4 or 5 tables available when we arrived.

I ordered the rib-eye, loaded potato and collards. I got shoe leather, baked apples and collards. I couldn't hardly cut the steak it was so tough. It tasted like freezer burn. The waiter laughed and said he didn't know if the potato was coming out. The collards were good. I think this one is a case of poor ordering on my part. There are some places you should never order a steak and Banner Elk Cafe is one of them.

We were out in WNC doing relief work after the hurricane. We decided to stop at this beautiful place for lunch and I'm glad we did! Everything was perfect.

The perfect neighborhood restaurant with many delicious options & a variety of pleasant settings ( bar , outdoor patio, covered open dining, or cozy tables indoors).

Great surprise! Charming. We ate outside and the server was great fun. The food was terrific and fresh. The desert selection like the menu selection plentiful and the perfect ending.

The wait time is atrocious, and to be completely Frank the food is even worse. One would say that it is in fact difficult to mess up a Greek salad and a pizza. Yet today I was wronged. The Greek salad was on a spinach base and the whole food composition tainted the good name of a Greek salad. Besides the fact that the food took over 40min arrive. The pizza was in fact not a pizza but a made tortilla and cold. The only positive thing I can say that the server was sweet and understanding and the water tasted good.

The overall vibe of this place was great! Loved the energy overall and the service was amazing! 5/5 stars there. But the food unfortunately fell short for me. The pecan trout was very disappointing and bland. I could hardly taste anything even the pecans. The lobster risotto was good, but a little too thick for me personally. The veggies were okay, nothing special there. Overall, I rate this meal a 2/5. It wasn't very good, and left me feeling unsatisfied. Which is a bummer because it looked amazing! Maybe another menu item here is better than what I ordered! Because the ambiance was so great, I'm rating this place a 3/5. Would recommend, but maybe stay away from what I ordered.

Our waitress Sarah Jo was awesome! Had a great time with trivia. Salmon was cooked perfectly.

We had one of the best pizza's ever for dinner and then came back the next morning for some great Pancakes and French Toast! Very nice ambiance as well.

Burgers were bland, no seasoning at all. French fries were also tasteless. Very disappointing as we really enjoyed our meal last year when we visited Banner Elk.

The service was nice. Not much on the menu for someone that doesn't eat meat but the pinto beans and cornbread were very delicious. Simple comfort meal, i could have licked the bowl Super homey feel to the restaurant.

We love to sit at the bar and have a drink and lunch. Today was no exception. Beth at the bar is great!

Service was great. Anna was a great server. Very attentive. Atmosphere was great! Food delivery was quick.

Very good food and helpful waitress. Loved the quiet atmosphere.. our kids loved it too. Great menu with lots of options.

Banner Elk is a beautiful quaint town sitting close to Grandfather and Beech Mountains, known for their hiking and skiing. We've happily discovered this gem of a town when we dropped our son off for college. Banner Elk Cafe, a breakfast and specialty coffee shop during our visit that has been added to our list of favorite places. Fresh brewed coffee, comfortable seating and friendly service. Oh and super dog friendly town they happily provide plenty of spaces and accommodations for fur babies.

This is THE best restaurant in NC and possibly the world. They make everything. Pizza, pasta, burgers, gyros, sandwiches breakfast and much more. Plus they make it better than your favorite place. Burgers? The best, pancakes? The best, seafood?! Need I say it?!?!? The best. It's actually unreal. Next up is the ambiance. The place is massive they have 3 sections of indoor seating with different "vibes" a lodge type with booths. A more classic restaurant style and a cafe. Plus beautiful outdoor seating with a massive wood panel breezeway area and tables with umbrellas. Then the service. Every server we have had is kind and helpful. We have a 2 year old boy that has a lot of energy and they are always enthusiastic and willing to help us.

The food and service from Anna was great, as well as the vibe of the restaurant! Definitely recommend stopping by this place!

Mediocre at best. We hit this spot on our way out of Banner Elk from a mini vacation. This was just my teen and I; we were looking for a local spot hoping for a good meal. I'm sorry ya'll but, breakfast is pretty simple. Difficult to mess up or make poorly, however; it's obviously doable. First - let's talk toast. Can someone explain the thought process behind serving barely warm toasted bread to you WITHOUT buttering it ahead of time? So essentially these big (portions were large) hunks of toasted bread come out already cooled off and I'm trying to spread butter without any heat. Really?? Results in thick, cold, butter that can't melt. Who prefers this?? Eggs - I ordered mine scrambled w/cheese and requested shelled eggs because I tend to enjoy the texture and taste more. These were a huge disappointment. Scrambled should be cooked thoroughly. That means, no watery pools in the center of your eggs. My son ordered his over medium. That essentially meant that some of the yolk was dippy and some was hard fried and solid. Anyone out there who loves a good egg, and knows what that consists of, can tell you - that's not over medium. Bacon - tons of bacon. But not full strips of bacon, noooo...it would be simply ridiculous to expect a slice of bacon as the side. Instead you get a bunch of partially burnt/partially correctly cooked pieces all jumbled up and cracked apart. So have fun picking up pieces off your plate as they're crumbling apart. :D The tea. Don't do it. So, ya'll can come for me but, I like my tea UNSWEET. My son prefers sweet; neither option is worth it. We're trying to get through our breakfast and both stop, almost simultaneously to say - this tea is so dry and flavorless that it makes you feel MORE thirsty. His biscuits...again, HUGE, but just dry. Breaking apart. No flavor. Across the board the breakfast items are flavorless. The atmosphere is cool. It is unique without a doubt. Have to say though, when you're seating customers near a door that door should be closed when it's cold and damp outside. Not propped wide open so gusts of cold wind come plowing through and smack you in the face. Just a bit of advice there. We ate what we could and didn't bother to even try to get a replacement because it was obvious that their standards are just low all around. Our waitress was very kind, friendly, and sweet. She's the only reason I gave any stars. Outside of her service this place was a complete disappointment.

I was speechless when I took my first bite. Service was good. I would love to come here again the burger was literally the best thing I have ever tasted. The fries were crispy but not too hard. Also the restaurant had cool props/decoration inside that reminder me of old Banner Elk culture. 10/10

Grace and Nichole are the best servers at Banner Café. Food was wonderful. Service was wonderful. We will be back.

We had a lovely breakfast sitting outside, it's such a nice restaurant. Anna was an amazing waitress and very kind. I took this butterfly picture while sitting on the patio having our breakfast. I would highly recommend this place.

Anna was my server and she was amazing. Attentive and patient as I was slow to decide. I will be asking for her section when I return.

I'm not sure what is going with the Banner Elk Cafe, but the last couple of months I've gone in there to eat, it's been awful. And I won't go again (they USED to be pretty good). Three times I ordered a burger. I said I wanted the meat rare. It came back well done. The buns are always stale and fall apart. Once I returned the burger, asked for it rare, and the second time it came back the same...over cooked and dry. The gorgozola burger barely had any cheese on it...you needed a microscope to see it. Also, I ordered a mocha and said to the girl behind the baker counter I did not want foam on it. I said it twice to make sure she heard me. She seemed annoyed that I repeated myself. When I got the mocha, there was about 3 inches of foam on it. The pasta dishes are good, but the servings are inconsistent. One day the serving is huge, the next its smaller. I've been in customer service for over 30 years, and this is just unacceptable. Except in the bakery side, the servers have always been pleasant, so my complaint is not directed towards them. I also messaged the restaurant on facebook and got no reply...though I know they read it. I would not recommend this place until they get it together.

Casual and rustic restaurant in the heart of Banner Elk. I was with a group of 6 ladies spending a day in the mountains. We arrived at about noon on a Saturday and added our name to the waitlist. We didn't have to wait too long and we were seated at a nice window table. They have 2 separate menus with 2 kitchens in the back, but you can order from either menu. This provides a lot of food variety, so whatever you are in mood for this place will satisfy. I had the calamari and pretzels and my friend had the sirloin steak. All the food we each ordered at our table was good. The restaurant was busy the day we were there- a fall weekend in October, but we managed to get in, enjoy ourselves, and get back out outside to enjoy the foliage. Note: There is overflow parking across the street from the restaurant on the side street called Central Way.