Shari's Restaurant in Rohnert Park, California: A Review

Shari's is a decent little diner, but the main point of appeal is that it's open 24 hours in an area where it's hard to find a restaurant open past 9. Shari's occupies a corner in Rohnert Park, California that used to be a Baker's Square until recently. The two chains are very similar, and thus little has changed inside. The restaurant looks the same inside and still makes a point of selling pies and cakes at the front entrance.

The Shari's menu is a little different, however. It's a little more expensive, with the meals running to about $10 per head on average with a drink, but the portions seem to be smaller. Portion sizes seem to range from "just adequate" to "not quite worth it" in most cases.

The one meal where they offer a small advantage is breakfast. They have a menu of breakfast combinations that are only $4 to $6, for those who don't want a huge breakfast and also don't want to pay a huge price. The Sunshine Starter is their most modestly priced meal at $3.99, consisting of one egg, one sausage link, one strip of bacon, hash browns and toast. You can also get Eggs Benedict over hash browns with an English muffin, something called a Mexi-skillet, or two pancakes with an egg for under $6. Unfortunately these deals are not available 24 hours, only from 4 to 11 a.m.

Lunch and dinner menus are made up of the standard diner fare - steaks, burgers, salads etc. - at standard diner levels of quality. After about 10 p.m. to 6 a.m., expect a lot more microwaved food and a drop in quality. One of Shari's unique offerings are stuffed hash browns, which are actually pretty good and worth a try if you wind up here.

The place is clean, the seating is comfortable, and all the servers I've had here have been very pleasant and good about checking up regularly. It's not a bad diner at all, but they're competing with Black Bear just across the highway, who offer some pretty good food and huge portions for the same prices that Shari's is charging. Thus, the only real advantage to coming here is if you just want a small breakfast for less than $10, or if it's two in the morning. Don't get me wrong, I'm happy to see a 24 hour operation in a town that didn't have one before, but I felt like I was paying a little too much for a little too little here. It's OK in a pinch, but I'd try to get a table at Black Bear first.