Cafes tend to have simple, homestyle food in a casual setting. Whether or not they do it well is what I intend to suss out when I get into character and walk into an establishment. Years ago, I probably ate at Arnie’s monthly, and when it was Tom and Deb’s and Carol’s before that. There’s plenty to be said about familiarity. But for this review, I was going in fresh after a good seven-year hiatus. Would the present live up to my memories of the past?

I’m always a little regretful when I can commend a place for their breakfast and service but need to report the negatives of the lunch menu, but that’s what I need to do here; though I certainly don’t intend to change any minds. Let’s get it out of the way.

I started with the clam chowder ($2.25 cup), which had a distinct off smell – part fishy, part metallic, part wet dog. Aroma almost always translates to flavor, as 90 percent of one’s sense of taste is derived from their sense of smell, and this was no different. Chili ($2.25 cup) was marginal at best, lacking the bold flavors I expect from this staple diner fare. A crispy chicken salad ($9.50) was different than I expected, but I couldn’t say it was bad. The mound of iceberg was topped with shredded cheddar, sliced onion, green peppers and popcorn chicken. This was surrounded by tomato and pickle slices buttressing the sides like fenders on a boat.

The Warrior burger ($9.50) named for the mascot of the high school across the street comes topped with bacon, pepper jack and chipotle ranch sauce. You can tell that a trend is over when it lands in a little, old-fashioned place like Arnie’s, and I’m referring here to the chipotle trend. This ranch sauce brings none of the smoke or heat that define chipotle peppers, so what’s the point? In addition to the mound of knobby iceberg leaves and the double dose of tomatoes propping the picnic sesame bun mouth-wideningly high, I was let down by the burger patty itself, a quarter-pound puck so overcooked both top and bottom were black. I tried again with the Worcestershire burger ($9.50), which boasts onions and mushrooms sauteed in Worcestershire sauce. Same black burger, and this time they add insult to injury with canned mushrooms. What decade is this? It’s no longer a matter of availability. Is there anyone who genuinely prefers canned mushrooms to freshly cooked ones? Furthermore, could there be so many people that prefer canned mushrooms that restaurants choose, on purpose, to serve them? I don’t think so. But I may be wrong; I was once before.

Sorry, but nine-and-a-half bucks is too much to pay for such a burger. At that price you could buy high quality beef, make 8-ounce patties, serve them on a quality bun and still make a handsome profit.

A lackluster potato salad and unseasoned fries had me choosing potato chips and coleslaw sides with my next lunches. One redeemer: the Club House sandwich ($9.95) had real turkey on it. I mean thick-cut, roasted turkey breast, not lunch meat. You don’t come across that much, especially at places that use canned mushrooms.

But don’t despair, for breakfast is well worth the visit. A delicious Spanish omelet ($9.95) features perfectly-cooked egg packed with fire-roasted green chiles, tomato, onion and plenty of cheese, with salsa and sour cream on the side. And one can do quite well with a standard pick-and-choose breakfast ($9.50) of two eggs any style, choice of two massive pancakes or hashbrowns and toast, and choice of ham, bacon, sausage links, kielbasa, sausage or hamburger patty. The eggs are just right, the hashbrowns are probably the best I’ve had anywhere, and the meats are no-surprises.

Chicken-fried steak ($11.95) is worth a trip. The massive slab is coated with a tasty breading, cooked fork-tender, and blanketed with delicious country sausage gravy. It’s also served with eggs and toast, so good luck finishing. Chicken-fried steak is certainly a heavy dish, but luckily Arnie’s serves breakfast all hours, so those who don’t like to eat such a thing in the morning can make it lunch.

The hobo scramble ($9.75) is a layered affair, with a foundation of scrambled egg topped with onions, hashbrowns, gravy or cheese, and finished with diced ham. Not for the diner who likes to eat one thing at a time. Biscuits and gravy ($6 half, $7.25 full) is also a filling breakfast; even the half order is a force to be reckoned with. The biscuits are the cake-like, fluffy, absorbent type (my dad would call these “yankee biscuits”), which isn’t the texture I like in a biscuit, but the gravy is quite good, and most yankees won’t know the difference anyway.