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New Jersey Diners, Pick from Hundreds

12 Feb 2008

12 Feb, 2008  NJ Photos, NJ Places to See

bendixdiner.gifIn New Jersey, there are literally hundreds of Diners. No, I don’t mean people who “Dine”, I mean eating establishments called Diners. My husband was amazed at how many there were when he moved from Colorado to New Jersey years ago, they just don’t have them out west.

On my route to work in earlier years, I passed the Bendix Diner every day. This is your classic old-style diner, showing some age, but the food is great. Bendix Diner is one of the most photographed Diners, and the inside was used for shooting movies such as “Diner” in the 1980′s starring Kevin Bacon and other notable stars. But to me, it’s just a familiar place I see when I drive Route 17, a real piece of Americana right here in New Jersey.

The newer diners, the ones that no longer have the metallic look of an over-sized Air Stream camper, vary a bit in appearance inside and out, but there are a few things you can pretty much count on; a display of delicious Pies in a glass case as you enter; your choice between eating at a counter; at tables with bench seats that line the wall, and are often fastened to the wall called booths; and then there’s the open dining area with tables and chairs in the central area, and booths lining the walls.

What’s the best thing about a Diner…besides the pies? The huge selection on the menu! Some Diners are open 24 hours a day, and you can get any meal, including breakfast, at any time during the day or night.


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3 Responses

  1. rosie

    2008 Feb 23 1

    What a great blog! I love diners. It pained me when I saw the sign come down for Kless diner an icon in Irvington, NJ. I would really love doing a tour of NJ just to visit and eat at all the diners in NJ.
    Hey, that sounds like a blog all by itself.
    Keep up the great work!@

  2. admin

    2008 Feb 23 2

    Hi Rosie, my fellow NJ Boomer, thanks for stopping by and leaving your mark. I’ve many a diner to add, NJ can keep a blog busy for a lifetime :-)
    Maybe one day you and I can meet at a Diner for breakfast…at dinner time!
    Have a happy day!

  3. Tim

    2008 Feb 29 3

    I was browsing the internet tonight, feeling nostalgic, and I Googled “Kless Diner New Jersey”. One site told me that the location is now an IHOP. On this site Rosie posted a lament at the loss of the Kless. I have to agree; I have nothing against IHOP but the Kless was an institution. I was a student at Seton Hall University from 1975-1979. I can’t even estimate how many times, usually late at night after partying or, yes, even studying, that I or one of my friends would look at the others and say one word: Kless? That was enough to hop into someone’s car and head down the road to Irvington. Like at any good diner, the breakfasts were great but my all time favorite was a CBD, a Cheese Burger Deluxe. It came with fries and onion rings. That was nirvana to a college student at 12 midnight. The last time I went to the Kless was 30 minutes after graduation. One last CBD and then I returned home to Delaware.


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