Buddies USA Rushden in East Northamptonshire

It used to be a nice little place with nice food. The milkshakes were some of the best that I've ever had. The food was alright it depended on what you had. If you are looking for a similar kind of restaurant nowadays, try Amigo's near Stony Stratford.

Ok ish not a true America diner but better than tgi Friday's

I was very impressed with the place.

Absolutely delicious burgers, we tested : “godfather” and “top gear”. Huge portions! Lovely staff. Acceptable waiting time. Smoothie, coffee and juice very nice. Reasonable price. For 2 meals, 1 kids meal+ice cream and drinks we paid only 36£.

Slow service, no atmosphere and greasy burger

Very tasty food, large portions and reasonable prices, friendly and prompt service, can’t believe it was my first time here 👍🏻

Me and my partner had ribs, they were raw and cold had bad stomach afterwards. Only thing half decent were the chips. The bbq rib sauce tasted sweet and burnt not nice at all I am afraid. Maybe a burger would have been tastier but still not sure if it would have been any good. Won't be going back.

Easy to park good food good portions and bubble gum ice cream milkshake dont mind if I do

Can’t ever bash a buddies, love love love their Mac and cheese and burgers never had a bad meal

Decent food, decent selection, staff seemed a bit all over the place considering the restaurant was almost empty.

Good atmosphere good basic food

Lovely homemade lasagne..I couldn't eat it all was loads on are plates.would eat there again thankyou

Wonderful, we visited last night and it was great, food was lovely and the milkshake was the Don daddy. 😍.

First time here omg what a dish of food it was loads. Totally recommend it

Surprisingly quiet but clean, confirms and really friendly service. The food was great, a burger-lovers utopia.

Well cooked burger with all the sides, wasnt very busy

Good food, good service and value, could use a refurb or update

We only popped in for a coffee, a snack and a quick break from driving, but it was nice enough. The staff were very nice but the toilets were a bit chilly.

Great American style diner - breakfasts are good value !

Not as good as it used to be. Buddies burgers were always the best but now they are average

Lovely waitress. Fabby dessert, chips and coleslaw. Disappointed with chicken melt as cheese wasn't melted! We were surprised by how few customers were there- could almost imagine tumbleweed rolling through the doors! This spoilt any atmosphere that should have been in an American Diner.

Lovely meal...waiting staff friendly sad to say more staff needed a small group arrived 6.30 ish waited to be seated for 5 minutes then left as no one appeared

Felt a little run down and in need of a refresh. The food was mediocre at best.

food is plentiful and delicious

Excellent American diner just by Rushden lakes. Friendly staff, reasonable restrooms, and a recently redone menu. Good for families.

Stopped as passing on a journey. Food was very nice. Good portions and the lady that served us was very pleasant. Only criticism really was that the toilets and entrance needed a hoover. Would I stop again here..Yes!

A lovely little diner. I stopped here on my way home from a long drive. It was quite late and I got on just before they stopped serving food. As it was late there was only one waitress and despite this the service was superb. She was dealing with the multitude of customers that were there with a spring in her step and an infectious smile on her face. The food was well priced and wholesome. Highly recommend.

Over priced. Not good value for the money

Food nasty. Cook couldn't even do a boiled egg to go with my salad= half a lettuce, half an onion and a couple of little tomatoes halved! Floor sticky. Table and surfaces disgusting. Service quick, but they didn't care!

service was great and food was amazing with generous portions.. great value for money..I would go again for sure

Great food, great service. Guaranteed a seat as Rushden Lakes hasn't done them any favours. Get to Buddies peeps

Love this place travel up from the north east. Always have the ribs

Good food shame it's soo quite and empty😫

Plenty of food choice. Good sized portions.Reasonable prices.

Always forget how it makes me feel.

Food good... place was quite empty needs joining onto rushden lakes then would get more customer's

Massive portions for the money. Food tasted absolutely brilliant and the staff were very helpful.

Love this place been multiple time staff are friendly food is great not a bad price either would definitely recommend to anyone.

Amazing eggs Benedict. We regularly come here and it's always amazing. The bacon is properly grilled. Good service too.

The staff are trying very hard to make the place work. It's clean and the service is good. I ordered ribs, but they were dry and tasted as though they'd been in the fridge for a week. Dessert was great - one between the two of us was plenty!

The milkshakes me and my girls had were really good but that all i can really say were good. Considering there was my table of 3 and 2 tables of 2 the waitress was very slow at getting around to us. The food was prepared at record rate and looked great when it come to us. But upon looking closely and taking a bite, the record rate was not a good thing. My burger was burnt and the chips were the worst ive ever had. 1 of my daughters had the hotdog which the bread was rubbery (which i didnt know was possible) Overall very disappointed, and as that was a chosen resturant by my eldest for doing an amazing performance in her first theatre show i wont be returning any time soon! Go for the milkshakes but thats all i would recommend.

Excellent stop by a busy main road. Portions are generous but they cater mostly to full meals not snacks. Coffee is refillable if you have filter coffee.

Food edible but zero atmosphere

Great service, great food in American themed restaurant. Corned beef hash was massive and very tasty.

The food was great as all ways, a bit slow, but given that the restaurant was full this is totally acceptable. All staff we encountered were friendly and polite especially the blonde lad. This was my father's day treat and well worth the money

Lovely shop and lovely menu cant get enough of it

Nice meal and well priced awesome burger. Quality of food is much better than it used to be and there is a massive new burger menu.

Stepped for lunch. Really Impressed. Clean friendly & good food at sensible money.

I like Buddies, but this place is getting more and more run down unfortunately..

Nice food we'll cooked at a fair price and pleasant service very quick

My experience was not great, flies , luke warm ribs and cold starters.

Nice staff but food not so great

Amazing food friendly staff. New menu is a little pricey but the food is amazing and the staff are friendly and happy to assist. Meals were cooked to perfection and shall return :)

Very good American breakfast English style.

New menu not great, food bland, staff very nice.Afraid my last visit to a Buddies.Shame😥

Wonderful food and fantastic atmosphere

Since changing hands the menu has changed drastically, there is no longer such a large choice and it seems to revolve around burgers, which is fine if that is what you want. Shan't be visiting as often as we used to, which is a shame.

It was very quiet when our party of three got there at lunchtime which we didnt mind but thought it was a shame as its a great little place. The welcome was very luke warm so didn't feel particularly welcome ( you never know whats going on in a persons life but a smile doesnt cost anything). Food was great. Would go again

really? no breakfast menu at 11:45am. service slow, food over priced for what you get. never again. shocked

Food ok some items not available.

THEY HAVE CHANGED THE GARLIC BREAD ! 😡 but apart from that still a lovely family place to come. The menu may have changed but still has there quirkiness with the build your own burger 🍔 coke is abit expensive for one glass. Lower the price by a pound and bring back the garlic bread and you’ll do fine :) also I think a jukebox would be kinda cool in there 👍🏻

Great food and good beer. Reasonable prices too.

Good value for money. Food nice and hot.

If this was the first Buddies I'd ever visited I wouldn't visit any others. Thankfully I've visited others so know the service here is not represtative of others. The food was of a good standard, there's no denying it, and it's the only reason I'm giving 2 stars. There were 3 members of staff on duty whilst I was there yet nobody asked during my meal if everything was okay. Nor was I asked if I wanted a refill on my drink which I'd finished before my meal arrived. For most of my meal there was a member of staff standing close to me who was very obviously watching me eat which is very off-putting. All 3 members of staff looked miserable and there was no indication of who the manager was on shift. I was also unimpressed with the cleanliness of the restaurant as there was a considerable amount of food under the tables adjacent to us. At the end of the meal a waitress asked "Have you finished eating? Was it okay?" to which I replied "hmmm, it was just okay." At any other establishment I would normally be asked why it was "just okay" or how it could have been improved, but the waitress seemed content with my response. The impression I got was almost as though nobody cared, and there was nobody driving the restaurant forward or taking pride in the quality of the service.

Brilliant service I rate 5 stars amazing people we go here so often breakfast lunch and dinner

Good chips and selection of burgers.

Not what it used to be... Creative menu has been restricted and food isn't as good anymore.

Large portions good quality plenty of selections

Slow staff and way overpriced rubbish food

Poor menu since the take over, won't be going back. It's now a wannabe five guys.

Always good food and pleasant staff

In new hands since December 2018 what a change. Ordered a Cajun chicken burger with fries and onion rings. I got undercooked raw chips, a burger bun which was obviously days old stiff like crumbly cardboard and coleslaw which was just red cabbage smothered in mayo. I complained and was told - that is our coleslaw recipe and the chef has made a mistake which is why the burger buns are stale ! This was a Saturday lunchtime In excusable - won’t be going there again The onion rings were nice !

They need to bring back the old school menu. The food was terrible. Been using buddies for 15 year's. Won't be going back under the new management.

Ordered Barbeque mix, all nice apart the main part the ribs, dry and tasted dreadful told staff was told sorry and that was that, I will never order ribs again

Not good hoping new management will improve the service

Completely changed the menu, to hardly no choice now. They stated they are opened until ten pm. Some people came in at 905pm they were told they were closed. We felt very pressurised by the unhelpful staff to hurry up! We wasn't given. Choice of dessert.as soon as our table was cleared then came the bill. In the meantime the waitresses kept walking past, hinting for us to pay and go. Even standing there talking amongst themselves constantly looking over.yawning there heads off. Very unwelcoming staff. So we won't be back.

Update: visited again tonight and then place has come on leaps and bounds. Well done to the team and management. Well worth a special visit and I am sure the standards will continue to rise. Under new management, well worth a visit. Nice food and service with a smile. The future looks bright for this Northamptonshire gem.

Just went back into Buddies a week ago I use to have egg on toast for breakfast here however they have now totally changed their menu now and simple food like any form of egg on toast and similar simple foods now seem to have disappeared. I could not get anything that I fancied to eat for less than £8,9 which was their breakfast which is not cheap, As a driver I know many places that I can get a fully loaded/inclusive breakfast that includes unlimited Tea/Coffee refills for around £6. Still a good menu but no longer for me.

Nice friendly place. Good for kids. Food was good.

I've loved Buddies for years, which is probably evident by my expanding waistline. It's been one of my favourite go to places, it never disappointed. Until now. It has new owners who seem to want to put their own stamp on things. Gone is everything quirky that made Buddies a fun place to eat, instead replaced by a banal mediocre menu no different from your everyday transport cafe. Food today was decidedly mediocre, I won't be going back.

Amazing, vibrant American eatery. Even has a toy train running around the walls. Loads of dated grocery packets decorate the shelves. Even had small question & answer cards on tables to keep you occupied between courses. Staff attentive & good at their jobs. Portions are HUGE.

Huge portions, reasonable service. Overall the food was really good and cheap enough for the amount you get! Would definitely go again!

Menu has changed, there is a lot less on there now, think they took away to many of the classics which is a shame

Been going to Buddies for over 10 years. What a shame it lost its identity in the newtake over. Few things which might be useful for new owners to know from a customers point of view if they are interested in feedback? Noticed there is no answers from the restaurant to customers? 1. Old child menu had individual boxes with each food in for children to choose which helped focus Adhd and autistic children (and I’m sure others also) as information was separated. New kids menu is not better in this regard. Also lots of tots wording was better than super hero? 2. As a vegetarian it’s nice to get quorn options but I can buy and cook these products at home. the quorn burger was not grilled but warmed up in a brioche bun with cold salad and raw onion, skin on chips is not very American. The old greasy spoon sauté onion, and cheese veggie burger was a selling point for me and one I travelled to Buddies for. Veggies sometimes want normal not healthy. Unfortunately the meal I had could be bought anywhere at any restaurant. Unremarkable and bland. 3. Would prefer not to have a separate menu for vegan/veggie. Some people may disagree but I felt its a bit odd separating out so much it’s a totally different menu. I feel singled out enough without the restaurant doing it also. If you go out in a group just let everyone see everything. 4. Drinks are now refillable but unless you can get your own this is pointless as I had one no one asked or came near the table till we were done eating and so I paid more for the same drink and amount as I normally had when it wasn’t refillable 5. Atmosphere is everything. Silly things like the question cards on the table are fun and we always used them while waiting. I understand about hygiene but replace it with wipeable ones or laminated etc not just remove. Generally although I get it probably needed to simplify and reduced the menu to be more competitive I feel this has changed so much I can get better local to me now and I’m sad to say I probably won’t be returning which after a decade of using the restaurant must account for some constructive thinking on your behalf.

Awful service. Checked before going that we would be able to dine from the set menu, which clearly states available 11.30-4.30 and no restriction on days. Arrived and was seated only to be refused the lunch menu as it is not served on a Saturday. Queried this with the waiter who went to speak to the manager, who refused to come and speak to us. We left shortly afterwards and won't be returning.

Always amazing service but it is a shame they got rid of the doughnut burger

A new menu and very good it is. Well worth another visit

Menu has changed and for the worse, I loved this place and it not the same now.

Great service, but a bit disappointed in the new menu.

Skeleton staff and very slow service. It took over 1hr 20 mins to get food. Not the staff's fault but under new management.

Good food nice atmosphere tad expensive

Very disappointing trip. Menu changed, took 45mins to get starters, mains came out and one was cold.

Great place American style food done well

Great food as always and a now less complicated menu

Lovely food had hamburger very nice menus were very large lots of choices good service friendly staff good atmosphere will be going back there

Reliable and consistent food, reasonable prices good portions.

Great food ribs chicken burgers pecan pie and not bad prices

Great food really enjoyed it and well priced

OK but looking at bit tired. Staff good, food good, very busy hence waiting time. But overall Good.

It was lovely. It has three stars only because as an American diner they had no Seagrams 7 and their ribs were a little Jason Stathum!...