Reviews & Ratings for
"Nightmare Cafe" More at IMDbPro »

11 out of 12 people found the following review useful:
Possibilities unrealized, 5 May 1999
Author: TVholic from New York

I first saw Nightmare Cafe when NBC had a special Wednesday "sneak preview" some weeks before it premiered in its fatal timeslot in the graveyard of shows, Friday nights. The pilot seemed stylish and imaginative, although the effects were less than state-of-the-art even for that time. Taking place all in the span of a single night, it had a very closed-in feeling. The two leads were convincing and capable, but Robert Englund seemed just a bit too smarmy, trying too hard to distance himself from his infamous Freddy Krueger role. Still, it was a fine beginning for a fantasy show, or as one reviewer termed it, the flipside of Fantasy Island.

The remaining five episodes were uneven in quality, but it's unfair to expect a new show to find its voice in only weeks. "The Heart of the Mystery" was one of the better ones. But by the end, the show had abandoned the night setting and the mysterious waterfront the cafe was on. It just didn't feel right to have a "nightmare" show taking place in broad daylight.

Overall, it was a set of intriguing possibilities mostly left unexplored. I have the pilot on tape, and it's a good reminder of what could have been.

12 out of 16 people found the following review useful:
One my favorite shows...., 18 March 2005
Author: dancinflowers from United States, TX

I was 12 yrs old when this show was on. I remember it was one of my favorite shows back then. I watched it religiously. One day I realized it never came back on. It had been canceled, but I was still always looking for reruns. All I can remember from it is the sense of fantasy, and spookiness. You can only find those good, supernatural shows during Halloween season. And hardly even then these days. But with that show, you got that Halloween feel every week, even though it wasn't Halloween season.

Looking on this website, I saw for the first time that it was created by Wes Craven. As soon as I saw that, I knew why I liked it so much. I loved how when they opened the door to the café, there was nothing but space....literally....Outerspace....nowhere. That was awesome for a young mind to fathom. I just really loved that show and I wish that I could see it again.

8 out of 11 people found the following review useful:
"Touch that remote, and you die.", 8 April 2001
Author: Tics (ultimatetrash@hotmail.com) from somewhere

The tv-series Nightmare Cafe was one of my favourite shows when I saw it by mistake one saturday night. Great characters and one of my at the time favourite actors, Robert Englund as a mentor figure helping the dead man and woman to help other lost souls. Funny, imaginative and with this nice everyday halloween scare to it. But not totally satisfying, mostly because the possibilities are not explored enough. Except for that Nightmare Cafe is one fine treat.

''It all happens in this little place we call 'The Nightmare Cafe'!'', 21 November 2010

Author: Bullet-91 from Edinburgh, Scotland

*** This review may contain spoilers ***

It is an absolute enigma that this show was taken off the air after only six episodes. And surprising given the talent involved - Robert Englund, Jack Coleman and Lindsay Frost.

'Nightmare Cafe' follows the fortunes of 'Frank Nolan' and 'Fay Perovinc', two young American citizens who have both died on the same night as each other and in the same stream of water. They are, however, brought back to life by a mystic place situated near the waterfront known as 'The Nightmare Cafe', manned by the creepy 'Blackie', who hires them as his new cook and waitress.

It becomes clear to the pair that the café has the ability to bring back deceased souls in order to go back and correct all the blunders they have made in their lives. If they follow the rules, they will be given a second lease on life but if they disobey, then their punishment awaits them!

Of the cast, Robert Englund, best known as the man who gave us 'Freddie Krueger', was most definitely the star. He is magnificent as the sarcastic, self-centred, yet strangely likable Blackie and to me it was a welcome change to see him play a character other than an evil, psychotic murderer. Former 'Dynasty' star Jack Coleman turns in his best acting performance here as the facetious but kind hearted Frank. Lindsay Frost ( who previously appeared in 'Dead Heat' as 'Randy', that poor girl whose body starts to decompose while she is still alive ) complements the cast wonderfully as the neurotic Fay.

Like I said, With the fine performances from the cast and the wonderfully crafted scripts from Wes Craven and Thomas Baum, it comes as something of a surprise as to why this show seems to be under the radar. I rather suspect its either because its budget almost bankrupted NBC or its story lines were incapable of being followed by the average viewer's IQ. I shall never really know.

7 out of 15 people found the following review useful:
I can barely remember it..., 24 August 2006

Author: dr_foreman from Brooklyn, NY

...but I think it was cool.

Sometimes I like to surprise people by bringing up obscure TV shows from the 1990s that even I can barely recall. My two favorite programs to cite are "Nightmare Cafe" and "Covington Cross" - both short-lived, and both with a cool premise. Generally speaking, nobody I talk to has seen or heard of either one of them.

I remember "Nightmare Cafe" better. If memory serves, it was about a creepy café (of course). People stumbled in and had weird things happen to them. Oddly enough, I recall that the café was not strictly evil - sometimes, it would help people resolve conflicts in their lives. But in a creepy, cryptic way, naturally.

Mostly I remember the tone of the show, which was eerie, in a "Sapphire and Steel" sort of way. I also found Robert Englund very charismatic, and it was nice to see him out of mutated makeup for a change.

Of course the show was canceled, for the usual reason - it had a lousy time slot! I wonder if, given a chance, it might've been another "X-Files."

Apropos of nothing, one person I spoke to once did actually remember this show. And she was really, really hot. What does this say about the quality of the show itself? Nothing, but I thought it was worth mentioning!

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