Gatlinburg Restaurant Review: Our First Visit to Trish's Mountain Diner

Downtown Gatlinburg sure has a lot of delicious breakfast options, wouldn’t you say? There’s big breakfasts like Crockett’s Breakfast Camp and their skillets and cinnamon rolls; there’s Pancake Pantry with its… well, pancakes and tradition; Log Cabin Pancake House seems to do everything well despite its designation as a pancake restaurant; The Donut Friar captures its sweetness in cake and yeast form. Yes, there’s definitely a conundrum when it comes to selecting which delicious breakfast to visit on your Gatlinburg vacation. However, there’s a little diner nine miles away on 321 that has every right to declare itself part of the problem of choosing where to go for the first meal of the day…

We visited Trish’s Mountain Diner for breakfast on our way to Charleston, South Carolina for vacation. This was a place that was on my radar for years, and now that we finally call Gatlinburg home, it was only a matter of time before we made it there. It’s located at 3614 East Parkway, well away from all the noise of the downtown area, but still with a Gatlinburg address. They aren’t just a breakfast diner; they also serve lunch daily, and also stay open later for dinner on Friday and Sunday.

Upon entering, we were kindly greeted and shown to our table inside this cabin home. And when I say home, you do 100% feel like you’re walking into someone’s dwelling, unlike any other place I’ve eaten in Gatlinburg. In the front is what feels like the main living room, except with tables and chairs. In the back is the kitchen area, and off to the left resembles a family room for entertaining. Although, this wouldn’t be a place you’d feel like having a party—more like a family gathering.

Shirley was our server, and she exuded the kind of Southern hospitality that made me fall in love with this area the very first time we visited. I like to think we’re good folks back in my home state of Ohio, but this is a different level of kindness. Obviously, her sweet Southern intonation automatically lends credibility, but the ease with which she made us feel welcome and at home was some expertise you can’t teach.

As for the food, my wife selected the bacon biscuit, and my son and I went with omelets. I didn’t want to eat too much, but I wanted it to sustain me for the drive. Also included with the omelet I ordered (Western Omelet) was a choice of biscuit or toast (toast for me) and either grits, gravy, home fries, or hash browns (gravy for me… yes, just gravy).

Knowing my omelet was just a 2 egg one gave me a little pause as to whether it would be enough food, but that was quickly invalidated when we were served. It’s not meant to impress you upon first sight, but that’s not the point. It looked the part of a home-cooked breakfast and that was confirmed after taking a bite of each item. You’re not going to get oodles of cheese or fillings coming out, but what you are getting—as I did—is a no-frills highly tasteful “ordinary” meal. I say ordinary out of the utmost respect and admiration. If you want to be impressed visually, go to Crockett’s Breakfast Camp, but it’s not going to be any better in the taste department than what I had in front of me at Trish’s Mountain Diner.

The gravy was used for my toast and egg, but I just as easily enjoyed the peppery goodness by itself. It was sublime how well texture and taste also combined to form an ideal partnership. My wife and son were busy telling me how well their biscuits tasted, and after my lone bite, might just be my favorite in all of Gatlinburg. It’s a perfect middle of the road in thickness—not too light and airy, nor dense. The buttery taste in addition to the flawlessness in its fluffy finished product makes it a clear cut candidate for best biscuit in Gatlinburg.

While the coffee was pretty standard fare, it gets full credit for not being gross. If you’ve read some of my other reviews, the restaurant coffee here in Gatlinburg is mostly subpar, with a few exceptions. Anyway, it was decent, and Shirley stopped by for a refill before it slipped below the half-empty stage.

So, just how good was it? Well, its price is easily the best value in all of Gatlinburg. I know this is just a small local diner—obvious from the jump—but that doesn’t necessarily mean you get what you pay for. You will, here! We’ll be back sometime for lunch, for sure. As far as the rating, I have to give it a 5 out of 5. I’m always trying to find a reason to take decimal points away, but I just don’t have a good enough reason to do so with Trish’s Mountain Diner. It’s a fantastic breakfast, everyone. I know this place is out of the way, but if you can, I suggest you try them if you want some good old-fashioned home cooking made with love, Southern style.

Thank you for reading my Gatlinburg Restaurant Review of Trish’s Mountain Diner! I hope you’ll keep tuning in for all of my upcoming reviews and rankings of some of my favorite dishes and restaurants in this tourist town. Also, be sure to subscribe so you don’t miss any of these and much more related to our experiences here. I will be releasing my 14th month recap of life in Gatlinburg, only available to paid subscribers, within a week. I would be humbled if you took the leap to support my work. Stay tuned, and I appreciate you all for the comments and kindness!