Pocono Road Trip, first time back since 1991…

Denise and I were married on October 12, 1991 and honeymooned at The Caesar’s Pocono Palace (now Cove Pocono Palace) in Marshalls Creek, Pennsylvania. Back thru the 1980s I used to pass this resort heading south on Route 209 on my way to visit friends in Harrisburg, PA, . So when Denise and I were planning the honeymoon, I suggested this as a destination. Ideally, I would have loved to make a return trip to the resort in 2021 for our 30th anniversary but the Pandemic interfered and we put it off.

Fast forward to 2023 and I brought up the subject again in early June, right after Memorial Day and we ultimately made reservations for the middle of July and then fate stepped in at the end of June to put a wrench into those plans. We were driving back on a Saturday morning on U.S. Route 1 south in Danvers, Massachusetts from an early breakfast at the Agawam Diner in Rowley when a Deer ran into my 2022 Mazda CX-5. The front corner on the driver’s side of the car was damaged badly and subsequently deemed totaled by the insurance company. This screwed things up for the proposed trip to the Poconos so we cancelled the reservation. By the middle of July we had purchased a 2023 CX-5 and were back in business. So when the dust had settled by the time mid- August rolled around, I proposed to make reservations again for the Pocono trip and it was decided to happen in early September.

So, on September 10th, we set out on our little excursion taking Interstate 84 from Massachusetts thru Connecticut making a breakfast stop at the Vernon Diner in Vernon, CT, a totally convenient and easy off/on from the highway. This diner does a tremendous business, housed in a former Howard Johnson’s Reataurant.

Vernon Diner, Vernon, Connecticut.
September 10, 2023 photo by Larry Cultrera

We continued on I-84 as far as the western part of Danbury, where we got off the interstate and continued on U.S. Route 6 west crossing the state line at Brewster, NY and took it thru to Port Jervis, NY. I had traveled on parts of this road in New York State but never the whole length (approx. 77 miles). On the way across New York State on Route 6, I stopped to photograph the Olympic Diner in Mahopac, New York.

Olympic Diner, Mahopac, New York.
September 10, 2023 photo by Larry Cultrera

We arrived in Port Jervis close to 1:00pm and I contacted my friend Maria Pagelos Wall to let her know I was a few minutes away from her diner – the Village Diner of Milford, PA. I first photographed the Village Diner on November 27, 1981. It is a wonderfully preserved late model Mountain View Diner.

Village Diner, Milford, Pennsylvania.
November 27, 1981 photo by Larry Cultrera

Village Diner, Milford, Pennsylvania.
September 10, 2023 photo by Larry Cultrera

I have been “Facebook friends” with Maria for a good ten years or so but we have never met face-to-face. Her family bought the Village Diner in the early 1990s and Maria is currently operating the diner with her brother and a very able staff. We have spoken on the phone a couple of times over the years and the vibes I got from Maria was that she was a very warm and giving person! Denise and I got to the diner a good 15 minutes before Maria arrived. This gave me enough time to take a bunch of new photos before we went in and ordered lunch. We spent some time talking with Maria and we had a very pleasant visit. It was so very nice to finally connect with her!

Maria Wall with Myself and Denise at the Village Diner.
September 10, 2023 photo.

Interior of the Village Diner.
September 10, 2023 photo by Larry Cultrera

Interior of the Village Diner.
September 10, 2023 photo by Larry Cultrera

After lunch at the Village we drove about 30 minutes south on Route 209 to the Pocono Palace and checked in. We basically were in for the rest of the day. The next morning after breakfast at the resort, we ventured out toward Stroudsburg. I went searching for the Arlington Diner and got some photos of it.

Arlington Diner, Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania.
September 11, 2023 photo by Larry Cultrera

On the way back from Stroudsburg, I decided to stop and take photos of the now closed Four Seasons Diner. This was originally a 1970s vintage Kullman Diner known as the Pocono Queen Diner on Route 209 in Marshalls Creek. I first photographed it on March 20, 1982 and actually ate there in October of 1991 when Denise and I were on our honeymoon.

Pocono Queen Diner, Marshalls Creek. Pennsylvania.
March 20, 1982 photo by Larry Cultrera

Sometime in the 1990s, the diner was completely remodeled by Kullman and made to look like a modern stainless steel retro diner. Unfortunately, it has had a very spotted history since and been operated under at least two or three different names since, (the last being the Four Seasons Diner) and has currently been closed for quite sometime. It is currently sitting derelict and pieces of stainless steel trim are falling off the building.

Four Seasons Diner, Marshalls Creek, Pennsylvania.
September 11, 2023 photo by Larry Cultrera

That same early afternoon we headed back into East Stroudsburg and had an ice cream at Jimmy’s Ice Cream, instead of having a light lunch. While we were in the area I went and located Besecker’s Diner. I had photographed this place back on April 2, 1983. Back then it was a fairly original, late model Silk City Diner from the early 1950s.

Besecker’s Diner, Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania.
April 2, 1983 photo by Larry Cultrera

When I saw it last in 1991, I was saddened to see that they had added on a brick building to the front of the diner, presumably for increased seating. At that time I chose not to photograph it. I decided this time around to document it with a couple of photos.

Besecker’s Diner, Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania.
September 11, 2023 photo by Larry Cultrera.
This angle shows that the original diner is
still intact behind the newer addition.

We then got back to the resort and we took a couple of photos by the entrance sign on the road leading into the place. I took one of Denise by the sign and she took one of me. Another couple were riding bicycles in the area and the nice young man stopped and took a photo of both Denise and myself.

Myself and Denise at the entrance sign to the
Pocono Palace. September 11, 2023 photo.

The next morning (Tuesday the 12th of September) we had made plans to meet up with Michael Gabriele to have lunch at the Blairstown Diner in Blairstown, New Jersey. The border with New Jersey is actually the Delaware River and there are three ways to get from that section of Pennsylvania to New Jersey over the river. Two up near Milford, Route 206 just outside Milford heading south on Route 209 and then further south on 209 at Dingman’s Ferry. The third way to get across is by taking the Columbia – Portland Bridge southeast of Stroudsburg, either taking Interstate 80 or Route 611. We ended up going north to Milford and walking around the little downtown area. I managed to get three new photos of the Milford Diner. I first photographed this on February 26, 1982 and then again sometime in November, 1987 (according to the date stamp on the 35mm slide). This is an early 1970s Manno Diner with a brick and mansard facade. It has stayed remarkably intact and pretty original to the way it was built, with the exception of a section added on to the right hand side of the diner.

Milford Diner, Milford, Pennsylvania.
November, 1987 photo by Larry Cultrera

Milford Diner, Milford, Pennsylvania.
September 12, 2023 photo by Larry Cultrera

We took Route 206 over to New Jersey and made our way south toward Blairstown. I knew we would go by a couple of diners I photographed in the 1980s on the way. The first was the former Five Star Diner in Branchville, New Jersey, now operating as Victoria Diner. The first photo is from October, 1987, where the original monitor roof was visible.

Five Star Diner, Branchville, New Jersey.
October, 1987 photo by Larry Cultrera

When I photographed it this time it had a new hip-roof added over the original, more than likely to help the old diner from leaking in inclement weather.

Victoria Diner, Branchville, New Jersey.
September 12, 2023 photo by Larry Cultrera

The next diner we were going by was Yetter’s Diner in Augusta, New Jersey. When I photographed this diner in the 1980s, it was a fairly small 1950s vintage Kullman Diner.

Yetter’s Diner, Augusta, New Jersey.
March 20, 1982 photo by Larry Cultrera

I knew that in the intervening years, the diner was bought by newer owners and they replaced the old Kullman diner with a newer used Mediterranean style diner with stone and mansard exterior as well as arched windows. So I was happy to document this newer version on this bright sunny day….

Yetter’s Diner, Augusta, New Jersey.
September 12, 2023 photo by Larry Cultrera

We made it down to Blairstown earlier than anticipated so I stopped across the street to take a bunch of photos of the Blairstown Diner. The light was great and they came out fantastic. I first came across the Blairstown back in the 1980s. I first photographed it on December 29, 1984 and then again in March of 1990. This was a rare model built by Paramount Diners known as the Roadking. The setup was different from 99% of other diners. The cooking area was actually up against the front windows. When one sat at the counter you were facing the grill area and then the front windows beyond. Interesting historical note on the Blairstown Diner, it became famous for appearing in a scene in the 1980 film Friday the 13th

Blairstown Diner, Blairstown, New Jersey.
March, 1990 photo by Larry Cultrera.
The diner as it was with the original exterior before it
was redone by PMC Diners.

In 2005, the owners of the diner wanted to upgrade the appearance and called in Paramount Modular Concepts (PMC Diners), the successor to Paramount Diners and they reconfigured the exterior and updated the interior as well. The doors on the front were replaced by windows and a new door was added slightly off center. All new stainless steel with red stripes and a new parapet were added to the outside. The inside changes included the section of counter and stools on the right hand side were removed and the cinder block dining room & kitchen addition was redone to make it all look factory-built and match the newer updated interior of the diner section. All cooking was removed to a rear kitchen.

Exterior of Blairstown Diner, Blairstown, New Jersey.
September 12, 2023 photo by Larry Cultrera

Interior of dining room at Blairstown Diner.
September 12, 2023 photo by Larry Cultrera

Interior of dining room at Blairstown Diner.
September 12, 2023 photo by Larry Cultrera

Interior of Blairstown Diner with owner
Gary D. Wishnia and Michael Gabriele.
September 12, 2023 photo by Larry Cultrera

Denise and I outside the Blairstown Diner.
September 12, 2023 photo by Michael Gabriele.

On Wednesday the 13th of September, we started the journey home retracing the route we took down to the Poconos. We checked out of the resort around 7:00am and drove back to Milford for breakfast at the Milford Diner. Then we got back into New York state on Route 6 and I took a little detour when we got to Middletown. I wanted to revisit the Colonial Diner in that town. I actually had lunch there back on March 21, 1987 and the diner was pretty much in original condition at that time, the way it came from the Manno Diner Company.

Colonial Diner, Middletown, New York.
March 21, 1987 photo by Larry Cultrera

The diner went thru an update since I last saw it. It is the same diner but looks completely different now…

Colonial Diner, Middletown, New York.
September 13, 2023 photo by Larry Cultrera

After that we made it back toward Connecticut with one stop in Mohegan Lake, New York to photograph the Mohegan Diner. We passed it on the way to the Poconos but it was raining pretty hard so I was happy to get some decent shots on the way home…

Mohegan Diner, Mohegan Lake, New York. September 13, 2023
photo by Larry Cultrera

We had one pit-stop on the way home thru Connecticut when we got off I-84 in Newtown and had a snack at the Blue Colony Diner. After that, it was a straight shot home, arriving back around early afternoon.

Pet peeve time – It truly has always bothered me when people use the term “Greasy Spoon” or “railroad car” in relation to writing about diners….

1st pet peeve – Writers and or reporters referring to Diners as Greasy Spoons

Back on March 25, 2020, Jeremy Ebersole – a current Vice President of the Society for Commercial Archeology (SCA) who makes frequent contributions/posts to the SCA Facebook page posted a photo album to that page entitled “Greasy Spoons from sea to shining sea”. Now I had no problem with the photos per se, but I have always bristled at the term “Greasy Spoon”. In fact being a member of the SCA myself since 1981, I was somewhat shocked to see the term used by someone affiliated with the world’s premier organization that deals with documenting and preserving the businesses and sociological aspects of the American Roadside. Especially since the origins of this blog came out of the first ever regular column (Diner Hotline) that was featured in SCA publications.

Because I personally believe the use of this term in regards to Diners is derogatory… shortly after reading the post by Jeremy Eborsole, I decided to hold an informal poll and ask a few people I know and respect, what their feelings are on the use of the term “Greasy Spoon” in reference to diners?

Glenn Wells, diner aficionado, Roadsidefans.com

Glenn Wells: I agree. I think the term is used more by people who dislike diners to put them down, rather than embraced by people who like diners. As you saw I was VERY surprised to see SCA use that term the way they did Also found something I wrote around 2001 on my web site (not updated for a long time) under Diner FAQs: Some people refer to a diner as a “hash house” or a “greasy spoon.” Does this mean the food is bad? Let’s be honest for a minute. If every diner from the beginning of time had been spotlessly clean and served delicious food, such terms never would have entered the vocabulary. Some diners DO serve food deserving of the epithets that some people hurl at ALL diners. But diners are hardly alone in serving sub-par food. Even some very high priced restaurants can turn out some meals that are less than satisfactory. Then, of course, there are the fast food chains, where the fare is more consistent from location to location, but that does not mean that it is good.

Richard J.S. Gutman, preeminent Diner Scholar

Richard J.S. Gutman: I hate the phrase! Glad you are doing this. I can’t believe that the SCA used it recently…several times.

Ron Dylewski, diner aficionado, writer,
designer, commercial director and editor

Ron Dylewski: We often hear people refer to classic diners as “greasy spoons.” To many this might seem like an innocuous term, even a term of endearment. It is perhaps a more visual nickname than simply, diner. It can appear more evocative, denoting a certain je ne sais quoi or an ineffable quality that can’t be captured by simply saying “diner”. But none of that matters. The phrase is pejorative and should be stricken from any journalistic or scholarly writing, unless the phrase is called out for what it is; a slur. Similar names, such as grease pit, hash house and beanery are similarly used to denigrate diners. Writers are often encouraged to spice up their writing by using these terms. It just seems to add flavor to their prose, but in this case the flavor is all off. It actually distracts from the reality of what diners are and were. Now, don’t get me wrong. Not every diner is spic and span and not every one serves wonderful home-cooked meals. But that’s a decisionthat a writer would have to make on a case-by-case basis, not as a blanket statement about all diners.

Bill Katsifis, owner/operator of the East Shore Diner, Harrisburg, PA

East Shore Diner, photo by Larry Cultrera, January 1, 1985

Bill Katsifis, East Shore Diner: I do think the term greasy spoon is a degrading adjective. Makes it feel dirty. Yes, Greasy spoon, makes a diner/restaurant sound like a less than desirable place to eat. Thanks for the diner work you do….

Alexis Lekkas, owner/operator of Alexis Diner, Troy, NY

Alexis Diner, photo by Larry Cultrera, August 8, 2002

Alexis Lekkas, Alexis Diner: I agree with you. Only greasy spoon diners consider that a compliment and there are not many of them. By the way I am still in business even with all the Covid-19 issues…

Alex Panko, former owner of Peter Pank Diner

Larry Cultrera, Alex Panko and Les Cooper. Alex Panko is
the former owner of the Peter Pank Diner, Sayersville, NJ

Peter Pank Diner, photo courtesy of Alex Panko

Alex Panko, former owner of Peter Pank Diner: Hey Larry I am with, you, greasy spoon is derogatory. But I would always make a joke and made the people who referred to the diner in that way look stupid if they said that to me. LOL !!!!

Maria Pagelos Wall, co-owner of the Village Diner, Milford, PA

Village Diner, photo from Larry Cultrera, November 27, 1981

Maria Pagelos Wall, Village Diner: I don’t like it. To me, it makes it sound like a place is dirty with low quality food.

Michael Engle, diner aficionado/author

Michael Engle: I think for anyone who has put the time, passion, energy, and back breaking labor into running their diner or restaurant, that is the last thing they want to hear.  There are a number of people who are so far removed from the food industry. Many of these same people, especially the ones who find a diner “cute,” like they would a puppy, these are the people who are perfectly fine with the term.  They don’t mean any harm by the term.  And these people are validated by the few restaurant owners who adore the term.

Brian Butko, diner aficionado/author

Brian Butko: I agree, we’ve always avoided that term. I recall old diner industry mags discussing the term, and always talking about how diners should help themselves by paying attention to details, paving parking lots, lifting the industry, acting like “real restaurants,” that could be a fun angle.

Jeremy Ebersole, current Vice President of
the Society for Commercial Archeology

Jeremy Ebersole: Thanks so much for letting me know, Larry. I certainly didn’t mean to offend. I’ve used the term my whole life and never thought of it as derogatory, and that photo album has been up for years without any negative feedback. However, I certainly do not want to offend or imply that the SCA does not hold diners in the highest esteem. I love diners with every fiber of my being and just had no idea that term was contentious. I’ve been going back through all the old SCA publications and reading them. They’re just so great, and I always really enjoy your column! Please let me know when your blog is published and I will make sure we promote it on the SCA Facebook page!
P.S.: Jeremy changed the title of the post to “Awesome eateries from sea to shining sea”.

2nd pet peeve – Writers and or reporters mentioning railroad cars/trolley cars when writing about Diners

Another thing happened recently which tends to cause me to freak out. In fact it is something that I have been calling out newspaper reporters on for the better part of 40 years. Around the beginning of June, 2020, reports came out of Maine about the resurrection of the Farmington Diner of Farmington, Maine.

A number of years ago (2008), Rachel Jackson decided to embark on a risky adventure and save the Farmington Diner when the land it was on was sold to a national pharmacy chain. She had the diner transported to property she owned a few miles away where it has sat in storage since. Within the last couple of years, Ms. Jackson actually bought another old diner that had operated in Pennsylvania and Connecticut under various names. Her plan was to use parts of each to restore  (the one out of Connecticut) and return it to operation under the Farmington Diner name.

The reporter , Donna M. Perry of the Sun Journal wrote the first recent report I read on the Farmington Diner, kept referring to both diners as railroad cars. I immediately sent off an email to this reporter:

 I just read the piece you wrote on the Farmington Diner. Thanks for the update as I was wondering what was happening up there. I write a blog on diners (www.dinerhotline.com) and have written 2 books for The History Press, (Classic Diners of Massachusetts, 2011) (New Hampshire Diners, Classic Granite State Eateries, 2014). I have been conducting a personal research project on diners since 1980. I have photographed approximately 870 plus diners since November 29th of that year. I just want to point out that writers/journalists like yourself have periodically perpetuated a common misconception that diners are rail cars or trolleys. That is far from accurate. Diners are custom built buildings, usually built by a Diner manufacturer and shipped to a specific (or more than one) location. The diners in question are both Mountain View Diners, manufactured in Singac, New Jersey.

Donna Perry responded to my email and told me she had used railcar diner in her piece because Rachel Jackson thought that it was a commonly used generic term. Perry went on to say that she would amend her online piece to just say diner.

The second report I read was from Maureen Milliken of Maine Business News (www.mainebiz.biz) and I was very happy to see that Ms. Milliken, a seasoned reporter had done her homework. Her piece was well researched and mentioned Mountain View Diners. Not only that, she found a blog post I wrote from 2010 on The Silver Diner of Waterbury CT being closed and in jeopardy, (this became the second diner rescued by Rachel Jackson). The link to my bog post is here… https://dinerhotline.wordpress.com/tag/the-new-lafayette-diner/
So I immediately wrote Maureen Milliken and thanked her for referring to my blog as well as doing her diligent research.

Just to give a quick primer, here are exterior and interior views of an old Dining Car from the Boston & Maine Railroad…

That being said, let me say that there were and are still examples of diners that had been created from converted train and trolley cars. Here are a few examples…

an old Postcard of Leona Hillier’s Dinette from my collection.
This is a converted railroad car…

The Club Car Restaurant, a converted railroad car,
located in Nantucket, Massachusetts

exterior view of Sisson’s Diner, a converted trolley located
in South Middleboro, Massachusetts

interior view of Sisson’s Diner, a converted trolley located
in South Middleboro, Massachusetts

exterior view of Bill Gates’ Diner, a converted trolley formerly
located in Bolton Landing, New York

interior view of Bill Gates’ Diner, a converted trolley formerly
located in Bolton Landing, New York

The following photos are examples of factory-built diners that had the railroad car resemblance in their details…

Chadwick Square Diner, Worcester, Massachusetts

The Sparky Diner, formerly of Pittsfield, Massachusetts

The Capitol Diner, Lynn, Massachusetts

Casey’s Diner, Natick, Massachusetts (looking like a caboose)