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New England Diners: 20 Classics
Richard Gutman selects the best diners
by Richard Gutman
Richard Gutman, curator of the Culinary Arts Museum at Johnson & Wales University in Providence, RI, chose these 20 diners in addition to his list of Best 5 New England Diners in the May/June 2008 issue of Yankee.
Scan his list and, if you don't see your favorite, add it in at the "Comment" section below. Great dining all around!
Vermont
The Farmer's Diner
Timber Village, Rte. 4
Quechee, VT 05059
802-295-4600
1947 Worcester Lunch Car
Owner: Tod Murphy
farmersdiner.com
Owner/chef Tod Murphy is a pioneer in the sustainable food movement, serving fresh, organic and local as much as possible. The coffee urns are filled with Fair Trade brew. For once the diner business has a leader, not a follower.
Chelsea Royal Diner
487 Marlboro Road
West Brattleboro, VT 05301
802 254-8399
1939 Worcester Lunch Car
Owners: Todd & Amy Darrah
chelsearoyaldiner.com
The original barrel-roofed Royal Diner is now part of a larger restaurant, but even without the counter, the ambiance remains, like icing on the cake of its renowned desserts. Their "high-end home-style cuisine" includes Mexican food Tuesday through Saturday nights. During ice-cream season, don't miss their homemade offerings.
Blue Benn Diner
318 North St.
Bennington, VT 05201
802 442 5140
1948 Silk City Diner
Owners: Sonny & Marylou Monroe; daughter Lisa Monroe LaFlamme
The Monroes have serve traditional and innovative diner fare at the Blue Benn since 1974, with vegetarian fare alongside Tex-Mex, daily specials and a wide variety of classic dishes. (They make their own doughnuts.) With only 40 seats, be prepared to wait.
Maine
Palace Diner
18 Franklin St.
Biddeford, ME 04005
no phone
1927 Pollard Diner
Owner: Kyle Quinn
One of two surviving diners built by the Pollard Company of Lowell, MA, this little palace has seating for 15 at stools only. New owner Kyle Quinn said in a Boston Globe interview that his menu remains pretty close to what they served in the 1920s: "Diners have always been about large portions and short prices."
Moody's Diner
Route 1
Waldoboro, ME 04572
207 832-7785
1927; built on site
Owner: Mrs. Nancy Moody Genther
This family institution started as a roadside lunch stand more than 80 years ago, and its success has required 16 additions to expand it. If you stay in Moody's cabins up the hill, you can have breakfast, lunch, and dinner in the diner.
New Hampshire
Daddypop's Tumble Inn Diner
1 Main St.
Claremont, NH 03743
603 542-0074
1941 Worcester Lunch Car
Owners: Debbie & Paul Carter
A beautiful, one-of-a-kind Worcester Diner with striking ceramic mosaic tile and porcelain enamel. Scrapple, kielbasa, and baked beans join the excellent home fries as accompaniments to the breakfast fare. Heaping portions -- in the diner style.
Red Arrow Diner
61 Lowell St.
Manchester, NH 03101
603 626-1118
1922; built on site
Owner: Carol L. Sheehan
redarrow.com
One of the few 24-hour diners in New England, it has also been smoke-free for 10 years. Hash-brown specials with ham, cheese, and onions make a meal out of a side dish. And leave room for the pie.
Peterborough Diner
10 Depot St.
Peterborough, NH 03458
603 924-6202
1950 Worcester Lunch Car
Owner: Patrick Healey and Eric Finley
The beautiful forest-green enamel exterior of this diner perfectly fits its Monadnock Region setting. New owners have rejuvenated the diner, earning the praise of a regular who eats there "at least 10 times a week." Patrick Healey and Eric Finley are keeping a great place going strong.
Massachusetts
Rosebud Diner
381 Summer St.
Somerville, MA
617 666-6015
1941 Worcester Lunch Car
Owner: Bill Nichols
A beautiful streamliner restored in 1995 with its traditional diner backbar replaced with an alcohol bar. When you get your eggs Benedict, you can get your bloody Mary, too, and that's a rarity in a New England diner.
Casey's Diner
36 South Ave.
Natick, MA 01760
508 655-3761
1922 Worcester Lunch Car
Owner: Patrick Casey
Oldest and smallest diner (10 stools) still operating. Patrick is the fourth-generation Casey dishing out the renowned hot dogs behind the all-wood counter. Order yours "all-around" and they'll think you're a regular.
Charlie's Diner
32 West Main St.
Spencer, MA 01562
508 885-4033
1948 Worcester Lunch Car
Owner: Steve Turner
Once a Worcester landmark, this family business moved a half-hour west into Spencer, but they brought their good food, wit, and fast service with them. Everything is great here.
Shawmut Diner
943 Shawmut Ave.
New Bedford, MA 02746
508 993-3073
1954 Jerry O'Mahony Diner
Owner: Phil & Celeste Paleologos
Phil Paleologos is one of the great diner raconteurs, and his customers benefit greatly from his glibness and cuinsine. The linguica (Portugese sausage) is tops. The Shawmut Indian neon sign is a classic.
Nest Diner
81 Fairhaven Rd.
Mattapoisett, MA 02739
508 758-3600
1951 Mountain View Diner
Owner: Randy & Barbara St. John
nestdiner.com
A couple who met at Johnson & Wales University, the St. Johns bring culinary excellence to this wonderful diner near Cape Cod. They have a catering business and a homemade chocolate operation, and Randy still finds the time to teach continuing-ed classes at the Rhode Island School of Design.
Betsy's Diner
457 Main St.
Falmouth, MA 02541
508 540-0060
1957 Mountain View Diner
Owner: David Chandler
If you've got time to spare while waiting for the Martha's Vineyard ferry, do yourself a favor and stop at Betsy's for some fried clams or baked scrod. This lively place is always hopping.
Rhode Island
Liberty Elm Diner
777 Elmwood Ave.
Providence, RI 02907
401 467-0777
1947 Worcester Lunch Car
Owner: Carol DeFeciani
The Liberty Elm features fresh foods from local farms, Fair Trade coffee, and wireless, to boot. On Sundays there's live music in the diner's addition. The "real" food includes real Vermont maple syrup and nitrate-free, antibiotic-free, hormone-free meats.
Seaplane Diner
307 Allens Ave.
Providence, RI 02905
401 941-9547
c. 1949 Jerry O'Mahony Diner
Owner: Bob Arena
Near Narragansett Bay, where there used to be a seaplane dock, this stainless-steel beauty is filled with Providence police, construction workers rebuilding I-95, and locals from all the nearby universities. The calamari with hot peppers (Fridays only) is not to be missed.
Connecticut
Collin's Diner
Route 44, Railroad Square
Canaan, CT 06018
203 824-7040
1942 Jerry O'Mahony Diner
Owners: Aida & Mike Hamzy
The Lebanese Hamzy family has owned Collin's since 1969, and as a result the fare includes hummus, tabouleh, and stuffed grape leaves, along with more predictable daily specials. But the building itself makes a trip worthwhile -- a completely intact World War II-era diner.
O'Rourke's Diner
728 Main St.
Middletown, CT 06457
203 346-6101
1946 Mountain View Diner
Owner: Brian O'Rourke
Possibly the only diner ever given a feature article in Gourmet magazine -- the food is that good -- O'Rourke's recently reopened after it was decimated by fire in 2006. The Middletown locals, including the Wesleyan University community, pitched in to raise the funds to rebuild this landmark eatery.
Olympia Diner
3413 Berlin Turnpike
Newington, CT 06111
203 666-9948
1955 Jerry O'Mahony Diner
Owner: Tasos Gavrilis
The Olympia is a gigantic gleaming stainless-steel wonder, surmounted by an incredible neon sign. If they were to reproduce a diner in Las Vegas, this would be the one. Classic food offerings of the Greek diner variety on an expansive menu. Breakfast anytime.
Tandoor
1226 Chapel St
New Haven, CT 06511
(203) 776-6620
1955 Mountain View Diner
This classic Mountain View Diner, located near Yale, is a rarity: It serves delicious, creative, and traditional Indian food. No breakfast here. When you want a break from meatloaf and mashed, try the chicken tikka masala.
Reader Comments
Comment from GERALD AURICCHIO on April 26, 2008
How could you possibly omit the Maine Diner at Wells?Great seafood, fresh local vegetables? Too good to miss
Comment from Leslee Holloway on June 9, 2008
Two more good diners; - Miss Bellows Falls, 90 Rockingham St. Bellows Falls, Vt. and Lindy's Diner, 19 Gilbo Ave, Keene, NH
Comment from jeanie gover on June 9, 2008
Great article. I have been going to Claremont NH for years and never knew there was a Diner there. I won't miss it again. Thanks
Comment from Diner Guy on June 17, 2008
My favorite diner is "CENTRAL DINER" in Millbury, MASS. It's currently being restored back to its orignial glory. It's open while under construction and the food is fantastic. Stop in and try it. I can't say enough about it. The omelets are the best I've ever had.
Comment from Heather Del Balso on July 29, 2008
wow - kind of a disappointing list for massachusetts. Worcester, home to so many diner cars around the country, has TONS of really good diners that put places like the Rosebud and the Modern to shame. And they are far more reasonably priced, like diners ought to be. No one should have to pay over $10 for breakfast at a diner, no matter how tasty it is.
Comment from ELIAS KRITIKOS on December 16, 2008
THE OLYMPIA DINER IS ACTUALLY A LITTLE OLDER,1953 IS CORRECT.MY FATHER WAS THE SOLE OWNER ,MIKE KRITIKOS,UNTIL 1955.HAPPY TO SEE IT STANDING LOOKING GREAT.
Comment from Nancy Fink on March 17, 2009
Love the diner in Quechee, Vt. We always stop and eat there on our way from Ohio to Maine. This has been going on for over 10 years. May have to check out some of the others on our way back.
Comment from Terry Wood on March 17, 2009
The Maine Diner.....is not a diner! It is a YUPPIE resturant with exorbitant prices.
Hope that answers your question.
The Palace is a great diner with great prices and you get what you order.
Good old fashioned diner food
Comment from John Hosters on March 17, 2009
My wife and I are avaid campers, and traveling throughout new england as well as other place in this country, we love to visit diners. I would like to see someone publish a book or list of diners through the east coast and include it in rv mags. etc.. Love yankee mag on line read it all the time.
Comment from Ann LeBlanc on March 18, 2009
Massachusetts has a great diner in Northampton, Ma. It is called the Blue Bonnet on route 5. Anyone who lives in this area knows about the restaurant.... great food...
Comment from Kathryn Drelicharz on March 19, 2009
Do not forget Becky's Diner, 390 Commercial St, Portland, ME The best for whatever comfort food you crave!!!! Also, Just Barb's in Stockton Springs ME. Awesome breakfast!!!
Comment from cheryl donahue on March 19, 2009
Did the Agawam Diner,Rte #1 in Rowley,Ma. somehow get over-looked?.....I'm thinking that it was NO oversight so much,as this is apparently considered a NON-YUPPIE-type of diner!No ridiculous over-pricing,& No Sushi or Thai-food on the menu! I come from many generations of Yankee's,& have been an avid reader for many years,but this once seriously YANKEE magazine has now turned into a ridiculous self-serving YUPPIE publication.Websters Collegiate Dictionary defines Yankee as;a native,or inhabitant of N.E.,Yuppie;A young person with a well paid job,young urban professional.&the connection is???!!!
Comment from Linda Barton on May 10, 2009
As far as the Maine diner in Wells goes, tried it several times and was extraordinarily disappointed. Not only was the food not prepared well, but it could use a good cleaning; maybe the carpet should just be pitched. We like good sensibly priced homemade kind of food, but garlic in home fried potatoes for breakfast? I don't think so.
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