Diner: Difference between revisions

{{moreUse footnotesmdy dates|date=AprilJuly 20172021}}

A '''diner''' is a small,type inexpensiveof [[restaurant]] found across the [[United States]] and [[Canada]], as well as in Canada and parts of Western Europe and Australia. Diners offer a wide range of foodscuisine, mostly [[American cuisine]], a casual atmosphere, and, characteristically, a combination of booths served by a [[waiting staff|waitstaff]] and a long sit-down counter with direct service, in the smallest simply by a cook. Many diners have extended hours, and some along highways and areas with significant [[shift work]] stay open for 24 hours.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Russell |first1=Joan |title=The History of the American Diner |url=https://www.pastemagazine.com/food/the-history-of-the-american-diner |access-date=24 April 2024 |publisher=Paste Magazine |date=18 October 2016}}</ref>

Considered quintessentially American,<ref>{{Cite web|date=2016-09-05|title=The History of the American Diner|url=https://www.pastemagazine.com/food/the-history-of-the-american-diner/|access-date=2021-11-30|website=pastemagazine.com|language=en}}</ref> many diners share an archetypal exterior form. Some of the earliest were converted rail cars[[dining car]]s, retaining their streamlined structure and interior fittings. From the 1920s to the 1940s, diners, by then commonly known as "lunch cars", were usually [[prefabrication|prefabricated]] in factories, like modern [[mobile home]]s, and delivered on site with only the utilities needing to be connected. As a result, many early diners were typically small and narrow to fit onto a rail car or truck. This small footprint also allowed them to be fitted into tiny and relatively inexpensive lots that otherwise were unable to support a larger enterprise. Diners were historically small businesses operated by the owner, with some presence of restaurant chains evolving over time.

Diners typically serve staples of American cuisine such as [[hamburger]]s, [[french fries]], [[onion ring]]s, [[club sandwich]]es, and other simple, quickly cooked, and inexpensive fare, such as [[meatloaf]] or [[steak]]. Much of the food is [[flattop grill|grilled]], as early diners were based around a gas-fueled [[flattop grill]]. Coffee is a diner staple. Diners often serve [[milkshake]]s and desserts such as pies, cake or ice cream. [[Comfort food]] cuisine draws heavily from, and is deeply rooted in, traditional diner fare. Along with [[greasy spoon]] menu items, many diners will serve regional cuisine as well, such as [[clam chowder]] in [[New England]] and [[Taco|tacostaco]]s in [[California]].<ref>{{Cite web|date=2016-09-05|title=The History of the American Diner|url=https://www.pastemagazine.com/food/the-history-of-the-american-diner/|access-date=2021-11-30|website=pastemagazine.com|language=en}}</ref>

Until the [[Great Depression]], most diner manufacturers and their customers were located in the Northeast. Diner manufacturing suffered with other industries during the Depression, though not as much as many industries, and the diner offered a less expensive way of getting into the restaurant business as well as less expensive food than more formal establishments. After [[World War II]], as the economy returned to civilian production and the suburbs boomed, diners were an attractive [[small business]] opportunity. During this period, diners spread beyond their original urban and small town market to highway strips in the suburbs, even reaching the [[Midwest]], with manufacturers such as Valentine. After the [[Interstate Highway System]] was implemented in the U.S. in the 1960s, diners saw a boom in business as mobile travellers would stop for a meal.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.curbed.com/2017/5/30/15716116/restaurants-diners-prefab-historic-preservation|title=Diners, the original prefab success story|website=curbed.com|date=May 30, 2017 }}</ref>

[[File:Salemdiner.jpg|thumb|The Salem Diner in [[Salem, Massachusetts|Salem]], Massachusetts.]]

Inspired by the streamlined trains, and especially the [[Burlington Zephyr]], Roland Stickney designed a diner in the shape of a streamlined train called the Sterling Streamliner in 1939.<ref>{{cite book|pages=76–78|last=Witzel|first=Michael Karl|title=The American Diner|year=2006|publisher=MBI Publishing|isbn=978-0-7603-0110-4}}</ref> Built by the [[John B Judkins Company|J.B. Judkins]] coach company, which had built custom car bodies,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.uglyinvestments.net/auto/details.aspx?id=61 |title=1939 Sterling Diner |publisher=Antique Car Investments |access-date=August 7, 2010 |archive-date=July 10, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150710210009/http://www.uglyinvestments.net/auto/details.aspx?id=61 |url-status=dead }}</ref> the Sterling and other diner production ceased in 1942 at the beginning of American involvement in World War II. Two Sterling Streamliners remain in operation: the [[Salem Diner]] at its original location in [[Salem, Massachusetts]] and the [[Modern Diner]] in [[Pawtucket, Rhode Island]].

Like a [[mobile home]], the original style diner is narrow and elongated and allows roadway or railway transportation to the restaurant's site. In the traditional diner floorplan, a service counter dominates the interior, with a preparation area against the back wall and floor-mounted stools for the customers in front. Larger models may have a row of booths against the front wall and at the ends. The decor varied over time. Diners of the 1920s–1940s feature [[Art Deco]] or [[Streamline Moderne]] elements or copy the appearance of rail dining cars (though very few are, in fact, refurbished rail cars). They featured porcelain enamel exteriors, some with the name written on the front, others with bands of enamel, others in flutes. Many had a "barrel vault" roofline. Tile floors were common. Diners of the 1950s tended to use stainless steel panels, porcelain enamel, glass blocks, [[terrazzo]] floors, [[Formica (plastic)|Formica]], and [[neon sign]] trim. Diners built in the 2000s generally have a different type of architecture; they are laid out more like restaurants, retaining some aspects of traditional diner architecture (stainless steel and Art Deco elements, usually) while discarding others (the small size, and emphasis on the counter).{{Citation needed|date=December 2022}}

Many diners serve casual inexpensive food, such as hamburgers, french fries, [[club sandwich]]es, and other simple fare, with menus resembling those from [[greasy spoon]]-style restaurants.. Much of the food is grilled, as early diners were based around a [[grill (cooking)|grill]]. There is often an emphasis on [[breakfast foods]] such as [[eggs as food|eggs]] (including [[omelets]]), [[waffle]]s, [[pancake]]s, and [[French toast]]. Some diners serve these "[[breakfast foods]]" throughout the business day and others that focus on breakfast may close in the early afternoon. These are most commonly known as [[pancake house]]s. [[Coffee]] is ubiquitous at diners. Many diners do not serve alcoholic drinks, although some may serve beer and inexpensive wine, while others—particularly in New Jersey and on Long Island{{citation needed|date=December 2020}}—carry a full drink menu, including [[mixed drinks]]. Many diners serve hand-blended milkshakes.

Several international ethnic influences have been introduced into the diner industry in the U.S., because of generations of immigration.<ref>{{cite news| url=https://www.nrn.com/franchising/many-immigrants-restaurants-are-american-dream | location= | work=Nation's Restaurant News | title=For many immigrants, restaurants are the American dream | first=Jonathan | last=Maze | date=March 29, 2017 |access-date=December 17, 2020 |quote=Overall, immigrants own 29 percent of all restaurants and hotels, more than twice the 14-percent rate for all businesses, according to U.S. census data.}}</ref> Many diners in the United States—especially in the [[Northeastern United States|Northeast]]—are owned or operated by [[Immigration to the United States|first]] and [[Second-generation immigrants in the United States|second generation]] Americans.<ref>{{cite news| url=https://www.thekitchn.com/why-so-many-classic-all-night-diners-are-greek-243252 | location= | work=The Kitchn | title=Why Are Diners Traditionally Greek? It’sIt's an Immigration Story, Naturally | first=Jonathan | last=Maze | date=April 17, 2017 |access-date=December 17, 2020 |quote=There’s no official Bureau of Diner Ownership to keep count, but if you’re a diner fan, you know that Greek families traditionally run the show at these beloved 24-hour joints, especially in the Northeast.}}</ref> [[Greek-Americans]], as well as [[Polish-Americans|Polish]], [[Ukrainian-Americans|Ukrainian]], Eastern European [[Jewish-Americans|Jews]], Italian-Americans, [[Mexican-Americans|Mexicans]] and [[Cuban-Americans|Cubans]], have notable presences depending on the area. These influences can be seen in certain frequent additions to diner menus, such as Greek [[moussaka]], Slavic [[blintz]]es, and Jewish [[matzah balls|matzah ball soup]], deli-style sandwiches (e.g., corned beef, pastrami, Reubens), and bagels and lox.<ref>{{cite news| url=https://www.wbur.org/artery/2019/03/11/immigrant-owned-restaurants-incentives | location= | work=WBUR | title=Let's Stop Putting Immigrant-Owned Restaurants Into A Box | first=Irene | last=Li | date=March 11, 2019 |access-date=December 17, 2020 |quote=}}</ref>

Diners attract a wide spectrum of the local populations, and are generally small businesses. From the mid-twentieth century onwards, they have been seen as [[American culture|quintessentially American]], reflecting the perceived cultural diversity and egalitarian nature of the country at large. Throughout much of the 20th century, diners, mostly in the [[Northeastern United States|Northeast]], were often owned and operated by [[Greek-American]] immigrant families. The presence of Greek casual food, like [[Gyro (food)|gyros]] and [[souvlaki]], on several northeastern diners' menus, testifies to this cultural link.<ref>{{cite news |first= Joseph|last= Berger|title=Diners in Changing Hands; Greek Ownership on the Wane |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/16/nyregion/nyregionspecial2/16Rdinersnj.html |work=[[The New York Times]] |date=March 16, 2008 |access-date=May 27, 2009 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |first= Dena|last= Kleiman|title=Greek Diners, Where Anything Is Possible |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1991/02/27/garden/greek-diners-where-anything-is-possible.html?pagewanted=all |quote=... Greeks became a visible presence in the diner and coffee shop business in the late 1950s after several waves of immigration. They congregated mostly in the northeast, where the food service industry provided an easy economic foothold for many immigrants who were often unskilled and unable to speak English. As with immigrants from many nations, one relative would send word of opportunity back home, encouraging others to come to America. |work=The New York Times |date=February 27, 1991 |access-date=May 27, 2009 }}</ref>

Diners frequently stay open 24 hours a day, especially in cities, and were once the most widespread 24-hour public establishments in the U.S., making them an essential part of urban culture, alongside bars and nightclubs; these two segments of nighttime urban culture often find themselves intertwined, as many diners get a good deal of late-night business from persons departing drinking establishments. Many diners were also historically placed near factories which operated 24 hours a day, with [[shift work|night shift]] workers providing a key part of the customer base. For this reason, diners sometimes served as symbols of loneliness and isolation. [[Edward Hopper]]'s iconic 1942 painting ''[[Nighthawks (painting)|Nighthawks]]'' depicts a diner and its occupants, late at night. The diner in the painting is based on a real location in [[Greenwich Village]], but was chosen in part because diners were anonymous slices of Americana, meaning that the scene could have been taken from any city in the country-and also because a diner was a place to which isolated individuals, awake long after bedtime, would naturally be drawn. The spread of the diner meant that by 1942 it was possible for Hopper to cast this institution in a role for which, fifteen years earlier, he had used an [[Automat (painting)|Automat]] all-night restaurant. The diner as an institution in this painting is a vignette mimicked by a movie lead-in aired nightly on the [[Turner Classic Movies|Turner Classic Movie Channel]].

[[File:Jax At The Tracks, Truckee.jpg|thumb|The diner ''Jax at the Tracks'' in [[Truckee]], California, was featured in the food reality television series ''[[Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives]]'' in June 2010.]]

Diners have figured significantly in American films and television since the form developed. In ''[[I Love Lucy]]'', the episode titled "The Diner" shows the perils, pitfalls, and difficulty in operating a diner, to much comedic effect. Archetypal appearances include significant scenes in classic films such as ''[[Sullivan's Travels]]'' and [[The Killers (1946 film)|''The Killers'']]. The 1982 "rites of passage" film [[Diner (1982 film)|''Diner'']] was centered on an eatery shared by the protagonists. ''[[Waitress (2007 film)|Waitress]]'' in 2007 was about a [[waiting staff|waitress]] in a diner.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.eater.com/2015/1/30/7934459/the-history-of-diner-waitress-uniforms|title=How Diner Waitress Uniforms Have Evolved From Scandalous Bloomers to Gingham Dresses|publisher=Eater|language=en|author=Jennifer Wright|date=January 30, 2015|access-date=April 8, 2016}}</ref> Television series include the [[Food Network]] show ''[[Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives]]''. ''[[Pennsylvania Diners and Other Roadside Restaurants]]'', is a 1993 documentary. Diners are the focus of [[Photorealism|photorealist]] painter [[John Baeder]] who spent about 40 years painting diners across the US. In 1990, [[WMS Industries|Williams Electronics Games]] introduced a [[pinball machine]] entitled ''[[Diner (pinball)|Diner]]''. The object of the game is to serve all customers to light-up Dine Time (the jackpot).

* [https://wwwpatents.google.com/patentspatent/US497598 Charles Palmer's 1893 patent]

* {{Commonswiktionary category-inline|Dinersdiner}}

[[Category:AmericanCulture cultureof the United States]]

[[Category:CanadianCulture cultureof Canada]]