Join us for southern homestyle cooking and hospitality! We are a full-service restaurant with with an extensive menu as well as breakfast, lunch and dinner buffets. Donna's Old Town Cafe, LLC is a local, family-owned and operated restaurant located in historic downtown Madisonville. The ceiling has original metal impressed with a beautiful floral design in each square.
Historic pictures of downtown Madisonville hang about the walls as well as a drawing of the historic Monroe County Court house, which is located directly across the street, and sketches of local churches adorn the walls as well. The decorations change with the holidays and are magnificent. The restaurant is known for its excellent iced tea, fresh baked rolls, and homemade desserts, especially the peanut butter pie and blackberry cobbler.
Historic pictures of downtown Madisonville hang about the walls as well as a drawing of the historic Monroe County Court house, which is located directly across the street, and sketches of local churches adorn the walls as well. The decorations change with the holidays and are magnificent. The restaurant is known for its excellent iced tea, fresh baked rolls, and homemade desserts, especially the peanut butter pie and blackberry cobbler.
Services
My buddy and I were riding around after a visit to the Sweetwater Flea Market on a recent Saturday, and stopped by the Donna's for lunch. It was a nice surprise to find a non-fast food chain restaurant open on a Saturday afternoon in Madisonville, which is (for us) a bit off our beaten path. Cyndi was our waitress and she did a stand-up job, even though she was busy with several other chores.
Reviews (23)
Ailene Phillips
Jan 30, 2022
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Sj Delaney
Jan 21, 2022
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I don't care much for this place. The younger girl that waited on us was sweet . But the two woman that seen us walk in give us a like that they didn't want us to be setting at the seating. I'm a very outspoken person didn't want to cause a problem. So i ask the young girl who was the owner 🤔 want be going back there again!!
Donna Thomas
Jan 21, 2022
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This place is a 10 star. The restaurant, the staff, THE FOOD are all EXCELLENT! Wish we could eat there every day! It was my husband’s birthday! They sang happy birthday and presented him with a homemade chocolate lava cake with ice cream. It was fabulous! We live in Chattanooga and cannot wait to return!!
Douglas Konkle
Jan 12, 2022
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Fantastic diner! ALL of the food tasted made from scratch. I helped myself to everything on the very large buffet and wasn’t disappointed by a single item. Notable mentions are the hush puppies and fried fish, and the vegetable stew. Quick drive from the local airport (curtesy cars available, thank you!).
Angel Tennessee
Jan 03, 2022
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Teri C.
Jan 02, 2022
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Every trip we've made to Donna's has been exceptional; food is always yummy and hot and service is always great too! Our favorites are the chicken and chocolate gravy but everything we've tried has been fabulous. Don't pass this place up, if you love southern home cooked food and wonderful service, this is your go-to when in Madisonville, TN! Can't wait to go back for breakfast and more chocolate gravy and biscuits, so yummy!
Carol
Dec 24, 2021
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Bobby Johnson
Dec 23, 2021
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Airplane Mechanic
Oct 18, 2021
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Debra C.
Oct 14, 2021
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Can't say enough good things about Donna's! Not your typical buffet food. The fish was flaky and crisp. The vegetables were well cooked and delicious. Mashed potatoes were obviously home cooked. Desserts were plentiful. Cute decor and great servers. The owner's daughter stopped by and chatted. 5 stars all around.
Jo B.
Sep 12, 2021
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Jim N.
Sep 11, 2021
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If you're in Madisonville this is a no brainer. Not only is the food good but the service is over the top. We visited this location twice while we were in the area and I just can't say enough good things about them. It's a family operated business and Donna has taught them all well, respect and work ethics. If only this restaurant was close to home, I'd be a regular. When we walked into the restaurant there was a table set up honoring the 13 men & women that lost their lives in Afghanistan. We're huge supporters of the military and I loved seeing this. Thanks
Matt Simmons
Jul 18, 2021
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Mayela D.
Dec 03, 2020
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Amazing experience!!
I am so glad I call you guys to help me with this long distance surprise!
THANK you guys for delivering a delicious BFast for Zev and make his day extra special!
His Birthday breakfast was for sure a sweet and unexpected surprise and the pancake candle was such a sweet and thoughtful detail...
THANK YOU!
Mayela!
I am so glad I call you guys to help me with this long distance surprise!
THANK you guys for delivering a delicious BFast for Zev and make his day extra special!
His Birthday breakfast was for sure a sweet and unexpected surprise and the pancake candle was such a sweet and thoughtful detail...
THANK YOU!
Mayela!
Stephanie Q.
May 15, 2020
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Scott L.
Oct 16, 2019
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In town for a Tennessee vs Miss State game and spent some time the day before seeing some of the beautiful sites around and stopped in at Donnas in Madisonville. Solid "home cooking" with friendly and professional staff. Ate the dinner and the breakfast buffet before the weekend was over. Definitely a keeper.
Aspyn G.
Sep 30, 2019
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Three words-
EAT THE CATFISH. We chose this restaurant by random chance and we are so happy we did. The catfish was to die for. They had a buffet with several meat options -which is nice for picky eaters like me. I have to say I enjoyed everything I put on my plate and that never happens in my experience. Great place for southern cooking lovers. The service was average, attentive but not annoying. No complaints. Hope to return when we are back in town!
EAT THE CATFISH. We chose this restaurant by random chance and we are so happy we did. The catfish was to die for. They had a buffet with several meat options -which is nice for picky eaters like me. I have to say I enjoyed everything I put on my plate and that never happens in my experience. Great place for southern cooking lovers. The service was average, attentive but not annoying. No complaints. Hope to return when we are back in town!
Donna B.
Aug 18, 2019
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We found this place while on our way home from the mountains. We got there on a Sunday morning right before the church crowd rush. We had the buffet and it was worth every penny. It reminded me of the spread my granny used to put out on Sunday evenings. Fried catfish, beans, mashed potatoes, fried chicken, cabbage, salad, and on and on and on.
Loved every moment!
Loved every moment!
Lita L.
Jan 31, 2019
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We were back in the area and wanted to return to Linda's Cafe, which we found was closed, and ended up here after a quick search in Yelp and reading a few pretty good reviews, and they were certainly right! We were seated right next to the buffet, and after looking at the variety of comfort food and an explanation of the options from Donna's daughter, there was no sense ordering from the menu. Lunch was $8.50, and quite frankly is way too little for what was available. There was crispy nicely seasoned juicy fried chicken, crispy tasty fried mild white fish, turnip greens, creamed sweet
Kristi M.
Dec 30, 2018
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What a gem! We stopped in here on a road trip on our way to a wedding and were so pleased at our luck to find such a great place. We both got the Sunday buffet. My husband's favorites were the fried fish, collards, fried okra, and green beans. I was a big fan of the collards, too, and the black-eyed pea salad. The strawberry cake was super moist with a very fruit-forward flavor--not overpowered by sugar. Everything we tasted was delicious. We hope to happen upon this place again.
Justin H.
Jul 09, 2018
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If a foreigner who had never consumed basic American food asked me to take them to an "American" restaurant, this might be it. We stumbled on Donna's (using Yelp as our guide) after going for a hike in the Cherokee National Forest. On the weekend, they have a buffet full of classics like meatloaf, turnip greens, carrots, cornbread (and cornbread casserole), etc. They have a full salad bar, soup, and hot bar. In addition, they have a regular menu with typical American fare.
The food didn't quite taste like "homemade" Southern cooking -- i.e. made-from-scratch sweet
The food didn't quite taste like "homemade" Southern cooking -- i.e. made-from-scratch sweet
Edward W.
Feb 27, 2018
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We arrived around 2:30. Since they close at 3pm we expected the buffet bar to be skimpy but it was well stocked.
Today, they had cube steak and gravy, fried fish filets, fried chicken & bbq chicken for meats. Potatoes, green beans, cooked greens, corn, Mac & cheese, cooked cabbage, bread pudding, corn pone & another vegetable I could not identify. They also had all the normal ingredients for making a tossed salad.
They had several options for dessert.
The food was good but I thought that $8.50 per person was a little steep for lunch buffet, considering that you can find other
Today, they had cube steak and gravy, fried fish filets, fried chicken & bbq chicken for meats. Potatoes, green beans, cooked greens, corn, Mac & cheese, cooked cabbage, bread pudding, corn pone & another vegetable I could not identify. They also had all the normal ingredients for making a tossed salad.
They had several options for dessert.
The food was good but I thought that $8.50 per person was a little steep for lunch buffet, considering that you can find other
David B.
Aug 28, 2016
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Really worth checking out. If we could we would visit here every Friday for the fish. Awesome place and awesome employees. Melissa is the greatest!! Make sure you try the yummo strawberry cake.
My only complaint if it is one, they stay busy. Busy prepping for upcoming catering which sometimes means your server is slightly slow with the refills. But, all ya got to do it ask any server and they'll happily top you off. Just knowing what's going on usually helps me.
My only complaint if it is one, they stay busy. Busy prepping for upcoming catering which sometimes means your server is slightly slow with the refills. But, all ya got to do it ask any server and they'll happily top you off. Just knowing what's going on usually helps me.
