Watson's Soda Fountain & Cafe

so i actually didn’t come here to eat, i came here for a photoshoot for a couples 3rd anniversary and i just want to say the staff there are AMAZING. so kind and everyone in the restaurant was congratulating the couple. thank you so much for being so kind. such a cute restaurant and such a fun vibe. we loved the milkshake bar and i didn’t try it but the milkshake the couple had looked delicious!!! loved it. thank you

I've been here for more than an hour and 30 minutes in a waitress asked me if I needed a menu and left 15 minutes later. All the other waitresses have avoided eye contact. Cute and passed by a few times but the service shouldn't take so long when no one is here. Management should have more diversity especially in regards to waitresses. Most of the colored workers have peeked around the corner but services are mostly catered to the white demographic.

I love coming here for ice cream! My husband and I come here once in a while when visiting Orange from Los Angeles. I'm a native Californian from Los Angeles and this place is the best for ice-cream. Try the root beer float or a brownie. It's super good and the workers are super attentive. I don't know about the food, but if you want good ice-cream and great customer service, a nice place to take the family out come here.

the entire staff was pleasant and on task and this was a surprise since service most everywhere has declined lately. We tried the BLT and it was very good with a unique twist. Great portion size. Street parking is difficult but the area is nice for a walk.

Watson’s is a historic mainstay of old town Orange, California!! It’s the oldest soda fountain in all of California!!! When you step foot in this beautiful place, you’re immediately taken back to the vibrant culture of the 1950s in America!! The bar too has been expanded and they now have a great coffee bar called Kiki’s Corner inside as well! Next time you’re at the Orange Circle, you HAVE to check it out!!

Never Again. This used to be the perfect family spot for food breakfast lunch or dinner and desserts. With amazing service and super friendly staff. Now if you’re looking for a place that will take over an hour from the point that you order to get your very mediocre borderline bad food then this is the place for you. However it will never again be a place for me my family or any of my friends. sad to see a orange circle legend fall so far from Grace. Never again!

Way over priced. If the kitchen looks like the bathroom it is scary. Nasty bathroom! The floors weren't even clean anywhere. Food was barely okay and absolutely did not warrant the very high prices. Sure it was cute, fun & nostalgic but far from worth it. I would have liked to leave a tip but $20.00 for a sandwich and drink... Hope they at least pay the help well.

My Husband and I were staying in Orange County for the weekend, just a few blocks away from Watson's. Found the cafe on Google and decided to try it. We were blown away. Food was AMAZING. We had the regular pancakes and also the peanut butter pancakes. So good! Atmosphere is great too. Staff were so polite with smiles all around. We decided to go again the following morning. We couldn't wait to go! Will be our place to eat breakfast (although I'm sure they serve a great lunch too) in our future trips to Orange County.

It was a great experience.I'm foreigner with strong accent, even it, Katelin, was SO NICE trying to understand me and without making me feel bad for my accent.Great service!So lovely girl

If you want a little throwback kind of vibe, diner feel with some hefty portions head over to Watson's. I have always loved this spot, having gone to Orange High School this was one of the go-to spots we would hit up. They've been around since 1899 and love the atmosphere. If you have seen "That Thing You Do" you will definitely recognize this place because some scenes were shot here :)We had the Cinnamon Toast Pancakes and not even 2 people could polish off the plate. It was super yummy! Besides that, burgers, fries, breakfast - all great and nothing to complain on that end.

I want to start off by stating I honestly never complain or like to leave bad reviews because I also work in a restaurant, but I had terrible service here. I was seated right away which I was happy about, then my server came over and she was very polite. She took our order and everything, then she low key disappeared. It took over an hour to get our appetizer when the restaurant was not even busy, our server never came over. As someone who is a server when the order takes a long time I come over to apologize but she never did. The lady who gave us our food was super rude, she had a green hair clip. She basically threw the appetizer at us, when I asked for more of my drink she rolled her eyes and walked away. My entree came out after, once again she was super rude and basically threw my food at me, asked again for my drink but I didn’t mention how I previously asked and she didn’t even acknowledge me and walked away, in a very rude way. Once again as someone who works in a restaurant I am always very apologetic when something like that happens, I did not get one apology for waiting as long as I did. I am going to give them the benefit of the doubt and say it was a bad day, etc. but it was terrible service not one apology for the wait on our order when they were not even busy. I am definitely not going back. Plus the girl with the hair clip was super rude, whenever I would say anything she would disregard it and roll her eyes, I was not even rude to her once. I would not have written this bad of a review if it wasn’t for her, I truly cannot express how unpleasant she was I am not sure of her name but I was aware of it I would 100% mention it. This was also my grandmas first time going out since the pandemic, and I didn’t appreciate how I was treated or my family. As a server I would have went about this very differently.

Perhaps one of my favorite Places to Eat breakfast. The Panther Omelet is my go To! Awesome Service, good prices, T.V's showing sports. I have yet to sit at the bar area and enjoy a cold beer. Enjoy!

The location for this is amazing, the interior is beautiful, but everything is incredibly expensive for the quality that you get which is middle of the road. I don't want to eat a $16 salad that looks like it's just a bunch of greens out of the box and a whole can of tuna plopped on top. By what my girlfriends say, the burgers are much better quality, but are still quite expensive for what they are.

Really cool place and good food. They have lots to pick from on the menu and the decorations throughout the restaurant were very different and a great fit for the theme. The food came out pretty quick and was a good price for what you got.

Really good cardiac burger that may really give someone a heart attack. But very delicious. Great service, can't ask for more.