Ted & Ali’s Corner Cafe

Reviews

• Ron S.

  star star star star star 17 August 2026

  Stopped in here almost by accident... what a great surprise.  The food was really delicious and fresh, the waitresses were covering the dining room like a solid team, and all the patrons were just (I know this sounds hokey to say) happy to be together in this delightful restaurant.
  
  Don't miss a meal here if you're in the Shelby area!

• Derek D.

  star star star star star 14 August 2026

  Okay I'm gonna say I was skeptical about this little place because I read all the reviews and they were all 5 stars, and I thought to myself it has to be one of those locals only diners where everyone's just nice to eachother because they've known eachother for 20 years. God was I wrong.
  
  First off, kudos for serving dinner items to me at 9am, I came in expecting breakfast, and I'm not a big breakfast kind of person so I was instantly happy to know I could order anything. Prices werent outrageous at all as we skimmed the menu.
  
  I ordered a meat loaf meal that came with meatloaf, mashed potatoes, a buttered roll and a salad for only $6.50. The meat loaf was phenomenal. Perfectly cooked, full of flavor, and a hearty portion size. Same with the mashed potatoes, they werent instant fake potatoes, they were definitely home made, and there had to have been like 2 cups worth on my plate. Crazy generous for the price! My girlfriend had chicken noodle soup and potatoes and I tried a bite of hers and it tasted good.
  
  The atmosphere is cool, lot of older folks eating and drinking coffee, nobody was rude and staring. Waitress was nice and did a good job.
  
  The hours here kind of suck I just wish they stayed open later! This place would get a SIX star rating from me if possible if they were open 24/7. Recommended!

• Jon A.

  star star_border star_border star_border star_border 14 August 2026

  Oh Yelpers, why have you forsaken me?  Five stars?  Come on.  Expected so much and got so little.
  
  My wife and I were very excited to try this highly recommended restaurant this morning.  The gravel parking lot was packed at 10:00 a.m. which we took to be a very good sign.  The inside is about par for the course for a small town restaurant.  All tables were filled, so we opted for the only available seating at the counter.  Our waitress - a term I use loosely - arrives after a couple of minutes and asks for our drink order with coffee pot in hand.  We both opt for water which seemed to put her off for some reason (I am sensitive to caffeine, give me a break).  Shortly after our waitress returns with waters and takes our order.  My wife opts for the shredded chicken and tater tots, and I choose the closed face roast beef with mashed potatoes and gravy.  As we sit awaiting our meals we observe the chit chat going on between the large staff and locals / regulars in the restaurant.  Understandably so, as the newbies / outsiders we were obviously not part of any of these conversations, but were also eyed suspiciously by both staff and patrons.  
  
  After an uncomfortable 15 minute wait our food is dropped off without barely a word, or smile, from our waitress - she did not check on us again through the rest of the meal by the way.  With the first bite we both realized that this experience is just continuing to get worse.  My wife's shredded chicken looks very unappetizing and tastes exactly as it looks.  I say that as a shredded chicken lover who had, up until today, never met a shredded chicken sandwich I didn't like.  Strange flavor and lukewarm.  I wanted so badly to take a photo of the sandwich, but realized that taking pictures in this establishment may not be wise.  We had already attracted enough attention as I guess the locals had never witnessed an engineer and buyer out of their natural habitat.  Her tater tots were not very good either with nuked pieces of other food items from the fryer making their way into her serving of tots.  My closed face roast beef was about as lame as it gets: the roast beef was actually just a bunch of slices of cheap lunch meat on white bread with instant gravy.  Extra points for serving real mashed potatoes, but they still weren't that great and seemed to be lacking milk and butter.  The waitress stealthfully delivered our check without a word as I looked down at one point and realized it was there.  No standard "How was your meal?" pleasantries.  Interestingly, at check out the cashier did not say a word to us either.  I was locked and loaded if the question was posed, but sadly there was no inquiry as to if we enjoyed our food and service.  
  
  Total price was $11.97 which proved to be the only high point of this experience for us.  I can see how Ted & Ali's Corner Cafe would be ok for some - most notably locals and maybe those who really like generic diner food.  If you aren't a local don't expect the welcome wagon, and if you are a "self-professed foodie" you will definitely want to look elsewhere.

• Jeff M.

  star star star star star 13 August 2026

  Great food at a low price. I go here every week and I'm never disappointed. Sometimes there may be a little bit of a wait, but servers do a great job at making sure your cup never stays empty for long. For a little corner café, this place is definitely worth your money!

• Lanie B.

  star star star star star 9 August 2026

  Hands down best diner in the area!  Staff is awesome and food is even better!  Worth a trio to Shelby for!