In our efforts to find a restroom, we stumbled upon the Spencer Opal Mine Cafe. We were planning on driving further to Idaho Falls for lunch and were pleasantly surprised by the restaurant. We decided to stay for lunch. I ordered the hamburger which was hand formed, along with fresh hand cut fries and my husband ordered the grilled chicken sandwich, cooked fresh. The owners take pride in fresh ingredients. While you're there, you an dig for opals on certain days and times, or, take the slightly easier route and buy some in the store. They're closed for the winter, beginning November 1st.
Craig P
We stopped for some food and to stretch our legs. I would recommend the food. We had the hamburger and fries, they were delicious. There was more than enough food. You won't go away hungry. Very clean which is important to me.
Will S
Solid american food. Great people and food. Not a tourist rip off. Have a big meal because you'll need the energy to gather opals all day!
John D
This place is excellent! Well worth the trip. I would suggest it even if you are an hour or more out! The dining was divine. I wanted to order some extra food to go and the waitress suggested that I wait... most people couldn't finish the meal... so I did. I am very glad I did. I can eat. I can eat a lot. I could not finish my Triplet burger and fries. The fries are so fresh and hand cut. The mountain of fries they serve you will make anyone leave their no carb diet! The burger was cooked to perfection. I do mean perfection. I can honestly say it is one of the best burgers I have ever had. The Triplet by the way is just a bacon cheeseburger.. not triple meat (thank god!). The waitress was amazing and made sure I had everything I needed. The owner was there chatting up real friendly like. Not used to that anymore. It was great! Out back they have a "mining" experience that I wish I had time to try to dig for opal, but sadly I was working. I hope to make it back there one day... BTW, the chef was amazing. She really does do it all... ask and see... :) Overall... GO! (and bring the kids if you have any, or try it out yourself... you won't be disappointed)
kendallg174
Amazing food and opals too! Staff is very friendly and helpful. We had a blast and left with a handful of opals. Nothing high quality, but we still had fun!
Connie L
You can't mine for opals at too many restaurants in the U.S., so this one is definitely unique! A cozy, charming little cafe with tables as well as the old-fashioned bar and stools up front. I asked a local regular customer what was good and she looked at me and grinned and said, "try the french fries." So, of course, I did and they were fabulous--and made the old-fashioned way (by cutting and frying the potatoes)! That alone is worth the stop, but my friends and I had a ball going through the rocks out back of the cafe in an attempt to find opals. We each found a little bit of opal and the owner shared the name of someone who will turn our stones into opal triplets for us. All in all, just an excellent stop (but if you mine for opals be prepared to get rock dust all over you!) What fun!
Allen B
For a small little off the highway cafe in a small little town this was surprisingly good. They had a limited menu but everything we had was excellent. The service was prompt and friendly. Worth getting off the freeway.
karlee_sos
great burgers, excellent fries. the family that owns this establishment go out of their way to make the visit enjoyable. can watch people out back mining while you enjoy lunch.
Claire G
We had a great time looking for opals there. We spent the whole morning diging in their rock pile, in the blazing heat, and came up with enough opals that we were satisfied with to decide to call it a day at 1pm. We also bought some nice opals from their small shop. But the best part was definitely the caffe: one of the best burgers I've ever had! Made with heart.
barry1170
My wife and I didn't come for the food. We came for the fire opal! There is a large mound of opal ore behind the cafe. That was what we came from Spokane, WA for! So, for $10 each (adults) you can pick through the opal ore and maybe find some specimens worth keeping. Most likely you will find bits and pieces worth keeping the pile is refreshed once or twice each week with a truck load of new ore. I found a fist sizes piece with possibilities for lapidary work when we get back home. A 12 year old boy showed up by the name of Isaac who works there who is an expert in finding the opal in the pile. He is a certified miner (????) and was helping everybody sort through what they were looking for and sorting out the opal from the garbage. This lad is a fountain of knowledge and was a great help to us! Thanks to him we came away with 4 1/2 lbs. of pretty good opal ore. Thanks Isaac! And, if you get skunked or just get tired of looking, there are plenty of places in the immediate vicinity to just buy opal finished as jewelry or as ore for far cheaper than you would pay back home!
This was such a wonderful day trip for me & my hubby. We live an hour away & visited the Spencer opal mine as our 1 year wedding anniversary getaway.The food in the cafe is wonderful! I had a reuben sandwich and my husband had the triplet burger,both came with a HUGE serving of hand cut french fries. The service was great also. After eating we were told the rules & tips of mining for opals in the mini mine behind the cafe. We spent about 2 hours digging through the rocks & left happily with 2 pounds of pretty rough stones. The gift shop/cafe had plenty of souvenirs,jewelry & gemstones in a range of prices for sale.
Goatesians
I've eaten at this great little out of the way place twice,and both times were really good. This is a little gem shop in the middle of nowhere, but they deliver a tasty breakfast and have a neat gem shop to boot. The portions are huge and delicious, and if you really have your game on, try the breakfast burrito. It's right off the interstate over the Montana State line into Idaho, easy to miss, but take the time to stop into this wonderful little cafe.
TheSk8Guru
We left Driggs, ID for home in California, but my daughter really wanted to visit the Spencer Opal Mine and Cafe. It was only about 1hr 50 minutes out of our way, so what the heck, right? The travel to Spencer was as fascinating as the opals my daughter was seeking. We crossed over to I-15 along hwy 33, through the ancient lava flows which begin at Yellowstone and end at Craters of the Moon. This is an amazing landscape. The drive due north to Spencer was easy too, and almost zombie apocalypse like with only 6 or 7 cars spotted totally along the way. Spencer is everything I expected. We pulled in to the Opal Mine Cafe at about 10:30. The staff was super friendly. We didn't bring anything to chip away at the massive pile of opal roughs blasted out from the Spencer mine 8 miles to the northeast. So, we did the next best thing, we shopped and shopped. Daughter, Wife and even I bought a few things. The prices were frankly very reasonable. I walked out, Opals and other goodies in hand, a few sodas for the ride back to home, and the feeling that we had just met some wonderful people. I can't really comment on the food. The Sodas we had were great, not flat, not too sugary, just right. But it is the people we met that were genuinely friendly. I may never, ever get back to this part of the country, but if I am, I'd take the hour plus drive just to visit, shop and have lunch at this truly genuine place.
mezollinger
We rode our RZR from Kilgore over to Spencer. The Opal Mine Cafe was open so we went in to eat. It is family owned and operated. They were very friendly. The food is home cooked and excellent. It is a fun place to look around while waiting for your meal. There are lots of geodes, fossils and of course opals including jewelry. The opal mines are not far from here. Our group loved the burgers. I had home made chicken and rice soup which was yummy. They have great fresh cut fries. I highly recommend this reasonably priced cafe. You can even watch people just out the windows looking for opals in the rocks.
Brian M
The Spencer Opal Mine Cafe is a reasonably priced cafe located in the small town of Spencer, ID. My favorite meals at this cafe are their breakfasts, which are ample in size and taste. The people working at this restaurant have been friendly and helpful. Cost of eating here is reasonable too.
In our efforts to find a restroom, we stumbled upon the Spencer Opal Mine Cafe. We were planning on driving further to Idaho Falls for lunch and were pleasantly surprised by the restaurant. We decided to stay for lunch. I ordered the hamburger which was hand formed, along with fresh hand cut fries and my husband ordered the grilled chicken sandwich, cooked fresh. The owners take pride in fresh ingredients. While you're there, you an dig for opals on certain days and times, or, take the slightly easier route and buy some in the store. They're closed for the winter, beginning November 1st.
We stopped for some food and to stretch our legs. I would recommend the food. We had the hamburger and fries, they were delicious. There was more than enough food. You won't go away hungry. Very clean which is important to me.
Solid american food. Great people and food. Not a tourist rip off. Have a big meal because you'll need the energy to gather opals all day!
This place is excellent! Well worth the trip. I would suggest it even if you are an hour or more out! The dining was divine. I wanted to order some extra food to go and the waitress suggested that I wait... most people couldn't finish the meal... so I did. I am very glad I did. I can eat. I can eat a lot. I could not finish my Triplet burger and fries. The fries are so fresh and hand cut. The mountain of fries they serve you will make anyone leave their no carb diet! The burger was cooked to perfection. I do mean perfection. I can honestly say it is one of the best burgers I have ever had. The Triplet by the way is just a bacon cheeseburger.. not triple meat (thank god!). The waitress was amazing and made sure I had everything I needed. The owner was there chatting up real friendly like. Not used to that anymore. It was great! Out back they have a "mining" experience that I wish I had time to try to dig for opal, but sadly I was working. I hope to make it back there one day... BTW, the chef was amazing. She really does do it all... ask and see... :) Overall... GO! (and bring the kids if you have any, or try it out yourself... you won't be disappointed)
Amazing food and opals too! Staff is very friendly and helpful. We had a blast and left with a handful of opals. Nothing high quality, but we still had fun!
You can't mine for opals at too many restaurants in the U.S., so this one is definitely unique! A cozy, charming little cafe with tables as well as the old-fashioned bar and stools up front. I asked a local regular customer what was good and she looked at me and grinned and said, "try the french fries." So, of course, I did and they were fabulous--and made the old-fashioned way (by cutting and frying the potatoes)! That alone is worth the stop, but my friends and I had a ball going through the rocks out back of the cafe in an attempt to find opals. We each found a little bit of opal and the owner shared the name of someone who will turn our stones into opal triplets for us. All in all, just an excellent stop (but if you mine for opals be prepared to get rock dust all over you!) What fun!
For a small little off the highway cafe in a small little town this was surprisingly good. They had a limited menu but everything we had was excellent. The service was prompt and friendly. Worth getting off the freeway.
great burgers, excellent fries. the family that owns this establishment go out of their way to make the visit enjoyable. can watch people out back mining while you enjoy lunch.
We had a great time looking for opals there. We spent the whole morning diging in their rock pile, in the blazing heat, and came up with enough opals that we were satisfied with to decide to call it a day at 1pm. We also bought some nice opals from their small shop. But the best part was definitely the caffe: one of the best burgers I've ever had! Made with heart.
My wife and I didn't come for the food. We came for the fire opal! There is a large mound of opal ore behind the cafe. That was what we came from Spokane, WA for! So, for $10 each (adults) you can pick through the opal ore and maybe find some specimens worth keeping. Most likely you will find bits and pieces worth keeping the pile is refreshed once or twice each week with a truck load of new ore. I found a fist sizes piece with possibilities for lapidary work when we get back home. A 12 year old boy showed up by the name of Isaac who works there who is an expert in finding the opal in the pile. He is a certified miner (????) and was helping everybody sort through what they were looking for and sorting out the opal from the garbage. This lad is a fountain of knowledge and was a great help to us! Thanks to him we came away with 4 1/2 lbs. of pretty good opal ore. Thanks Isaac! And, if you get skunked or just get tired of looking, there are plenty of places in the immediate vicinity to just buy opal finished as jewelry or as ore for far cheaper than you would pay back home!
Restaurantji Recommends
This was such a wonderful day trip for me & my hubby. We live an hour away & visited the Spencer opal mine as our 1 year wedding anniversary getaway.The food in the cafe is wonderful! I had a reuben sandwich and my husband had the triplet burger,both came with a HUGE serving of hand cut french fries. The service was great also. After eating we were told the rules & tips of mining for opals in the mini mine behind the cafe. We spent about 2 hours digging through the rocks & left happily with 2 pounds of pretty rough stones. The gift shop/cafe had plenty of souvenirs,jewelry & gemstones in a range of prices for sale.
I've eaten at this great little out of the way place twice,and both times were really good. This is a little gem shop in the middle of nowhere, but they deliver a tasty breakfast and have a neat gem shop to boot. The portions are huge and delicious, and if you really have your game on, try the breakfast burrito. It's right off the interstate over the Montana State line into Idaho, easy to miss, but take the time to stop into this wonderful little cafe.
We left Driggs, ID for home in California, but my daughter really wanted to visit the Spencer Opal Mine and Cafe. It was only about 1hr 50 minutes out of our way, so what the heck, right? The travel to Spencer was as fascinating as the opals my daughter was seeking. We crossed over to I-15 along hwy 33, through the ancient lava flows which begin at Yellowstone and end at Craters of the Moon. This is an amazing landscape. The drive due north to Spencer was easy too, and almost zombie apocalypse like with only 6 or 7 cars spotted totally along the way. Spencer is everything I expected. We pulled in to the Opal Mine Cafe at about 10:30. The staff was super friendly. We didn't bring anything to chip away at the massive pile of opal roughs blasted out from the Spencer mine 8 miles to the northeast. So, we did the next best thing, we shopped and shopped. Daughter, Wife and even I bought a few things. The prices were frankly very reasonable. I walked out, Opals and other goodies in hand, a few sodas for the ride back to home, and the feeling that we had just met some wonderful people. I can't really comment on the food. The Sodas we had were great, not flat, not too sugary, just right. But it is the people we met that were genuinely friendly. I may never, ever get back to this part of the country, but if I am, I'd take the hour plus drive just to visit, shop and have lunch at this truly genuine place.
We rode our RZR from Kilgore over to Spencer. The Opal Mine Cafe was open so we went in to eat. It is family owned and operated. They were very friendly. The food is home cooked and excellent. It is a fun place to look around while waiting for your meal. There are lots of geodes, fossils and of course opals including jewelry. The opal mines are not far from here. Our group loved the burgers. I had home made chicken and rice soup which was yummy. They have great fresh cut fries. I highly recommend this reasonably priced cafe. You can even watch people just out the windows looking for opals in the rocks.
The Spencer Opal Mine Cafe is a reasonably priced cafe located in the small town of Spencer, ID. My favorite meals at this cafe are their breakfasts, which are ample in size and taste. The people working at this restaurant have been friendly and helpful. Cost of eating here is reasonable too.
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