US Diner Menus

[Windigo]

[Mod comment: moved to new topic. (TR)]

TastyReuben I am a bit surprised at the regular size of the menus you post, I wonder how those kitchens keep all their produce fresh. Seems like a lot can go to waste. Here in Western Europe menus are usually shorter and those lenghty menus are usually not a good sign for the standard of cooking. How's that over there?

 

[Morning Glory]

TastyReuben I am a bit surprised at the regular size of the menus you post, I wonder how those kitchens keep all their produce fresh. Seems like a lot can go to waste. Here in Western Europe menus are usually shorter and those lenghty menus are usually not a good sign for the standard of cooking. How's that over there?

What is striking me (without wishing to be rude) is that almost without exception, all the restaurant meals posted are a symphony of brown and beige. There are no fresh vegetables or herbs in sight. I simply couldn't eat like that every day - or even once, really. I was holding back on saying this...

 

[TastyReuben]

TastyReuben I am a bit surprised at the regular size of the menus you post, I wonder how those kitchens keep all their produce fresh. Seems like a lot can go to waste. Here in Western Europe menus are usually shorter and those lenghty menus are usually not a good sign for the standard of cooking. How's that over there?

The standard has been excellent, across the board. This is a touristy area, so they do a lot of volume, no doubt, so it turns over quickly, and this is a meat and produce growing area, that's for sure. You can't drive 500 feet without passing a farm selling their own stuff, or a proper farmer's market.

 

[caseydog]

What is striking me (without wishing to be rude) is that almost without exception, all the restaurant meals posted are a symphony of brown and beige. There are no fresh vegetables or herbs in sight. I simply couldn't eat like that every day - or even once, really. I was holding back on saying this...

American diner food is what it is. Meaty, starchy and fatty. That said, the good diners have really good food. It is comfort food. To find a good diner, you ask the locals. Eat where the locals eat.

There is a place like that not too far from me that is a mom and pop cafe (the term diner is not that common down here). It is a few blocks from my first house, and I still go back from time to time. The wife runs the dining room, and the husband runs the kitchen. They know who I am when I come in, even if I haven't been in for a year. They automatically bring me my coffee, no cream, no sugar. That kind of environment is part of the appeal of good diners.

No, I wouldn't recommend you eat like that everyday. I wouldn't recommend you eat a full-English every day, either.

CD

 

[caseydog]

What exactly are you looking for in terms of a...colorful?...breakfast? Aside from peppers, tomatoes, and maybe spinach, breakfasts are pretty standard here - eggs/omelettes, pancakes/waffles/French toast, and oatmeal, with some kind of fried potatoes and a choice of meat on the side, and some toast.

There's usually a fruit cup or yogurt listed somewhere, but that's generally not considered "proper" breakfast food.

I think it is basically an unfamiliarity thing. Most Americans would think, "Baked beans on toast for breakfast???"

Fresh veggies at breakfast would be found inside an American style omelet. That, and potatoes (fried). Fresh fruit is more common, as an option to something like fried potatoes. Those are usually cantaloupe, honeydew and strawberries in Texas cafes/diners.

CD

 

[TastyReuben]

No, I wouldn't recommend you eat like that everyday. I wouldn't recommend you eat a full-English every day, either.

First, I'm remiss in thanking Morning Glory for saying my home-cooked meals look more varied/balanced nutritionally. I appreciate that, thank you!

Now, to CD's comment above, that's a good point - I am on vacation, which means, I'm eating what I want to eat, no guilt, no worry, and when I eat what I want to eat, it's going to involve potatoes, and lots of them.

Fried skillet potatoes with breakfast, potato chips/crisps with my lunch sandwich, French fries/chips with my cheeseburger for supper, and maybe some more potato stuff worked in for snacks. I can eat potatoes all day, every day.

Once we're back home, it'll be cold cereal for breakfast five days a week, and salads, and green veggie sides at night. Good in their own way, but I'd rather be eating potatoes.

 

[caseydog]

First, I'm remiss in thanking Morning Glory for saying my home-cooked meals look more varied/balanced nutritionally. I appreciate that, thank you!

Now, to CD's comment above, that's a good point - I am on vacation, which means, I'm eating what I want to eat, no guilt, no worry, and when I eat what I want to eat, it's going to involve potatoes, and lots of them.

Fried skillet potatoes with breakfast, potato chips/crisps with my lunch sandwich, French fries/chips with my cheeseburger for supper, and maybe some more potato stuff worked in for snacks. I can eat potatoes all day, every day.

Once we're back home, it'll be cold cereal for breakfast five days a week, and salads, and green veggie sides at night. Good in their own way, but I'd rather be eating potatoes.

Oh yes, I forgot that vacation food doesn't count.

CD

 

[Morning Glory]

What exactly are you looking for in terms of a...colorful?...breakfast? Aside from peppers, tomatoes, and maybe spinach, breakfasts are pretty standard here - eggs/omelettes, pancakes/waffles/French toast, and oatmeal, with some kind of fried potatoes and a choice of meat on the side, and some toast.

I wasn't particularly meaning breakfast but all the meals you have photographed when on your trip.

In the UK there are a few old style cafes left (but not many) which do cooked breakfast. They range from full English (which does have a bit of colour, usually in the form of tomatoes and beans(!)) to various combinations of sausages, egg, etc. So not that much different from the US. One marked difference is that generally speaking more care is taken in the plating. Most of the cafes have moved more up-market and don't really resemble the old style 'greasy spoons'. Also, many now offer vegan and vegetarian alternatives. Here is a typical full English from a cafe in my neck of the woods:

The Happy Chef, Dover

 

[TastyReuben]

Most of the cafes have moved more up-market and don't really resemble the old style 'greasy spoons'.

Sometimes, that's fine, and if we're on vacation in some trendy place, or in a urban setting, that's sort of what we look for, but this vacation, we're in an area that's made it's name on simple, basic, hearty foods, so that's what we want. It definitely reminds me of how we ate when I was a kid.

The up-market thing, though, and this is probably just me, that starts to feel somewhat forced and a bit phony, like maybe they're trying too hard to be quirky and different and always chasing the latest thing. Sometimes, you just want a plate of scrambled eggs cooked in a lot of butter, with some salt and pepper, and please hold the truffle oil and shaved cave-aged cheese, and ancient grain toast.

The first place we posted breakfast, where I had the waffles that came with a paragraph explaining that they weren't just any old waffle...it was a bit like that, and while it was a very tasty breakfast indeed, the atmosphere was all wrong for where we were. Now, if we lived here, we'd probably feel differently, because we'd like that variety in places to eat. For the 10 days or so that we're here, though, we want stick-to-your-ribs farmy food.

 

[Windigo]

The standard has been excellent, across the board. This is a touristy area, so they do a lot of volume, no doubt, so it turns over quickly, and this is a meat and produce growing area, that's for sure. You can't drive 500 feet without passing a farm selling their own stuff, or a proper farmer's market.

I truly believe it is good food if you say so, but that says nothing about the kitchen not being wasteful or inneficient. My restaurant experience tells me this.

Anthony Bourdain recommended to go to restaurants with 3 dishes per menu item because that way the chef can assure it's the best he has to offer. I think that's maybe a little drastic in it's minimalism, a little more on a menu is OK by me.

How to find the best restaurants in the world, according to Anthony Bourdain
The 61-year-old also suggests looking for menus that only offer about three items.
Although such a minimal menu may sound like a red flag, according to Bourdain, it means the chef knows the cuisine and knows it well.
If it looks like the restaurant has been whipping up the same few meals for a long time, that is also a good sign - as practice makes perfect.

I recommend reading Kitchen Confidential by Anthony Bourdain for more such insights.

 

[MypinchofItaly]

Anthony Bourdain recommended to go to restaurants with 3 dishes per menu item because that way the chef can assure it's the best he has to offer. I think that's maybe a little drastic in it's minimalism, a little more on a menu is OK by me.

I second that and it is something fully recommended here too in general, be wary of restaurants with too many dishes on the menu, too often reduced to something less than excellent and sloppy.

 

[Windigo]

Sometimes, that's fine, and if we're on vacation in some trendy place, or in a urban setting, that's sort of what we look for, but this vacation, we're in an area that's made it's name on simple, basic, hearty foods, so that's what we want. It definitely reminds me of how we ate when I was a kid.

The up-market thing, though, and this is probably just me, that starts to feel somewhat forced and a bit phony, like maybe they're trying too hard to be quirky and different and always chasing the latest thing. Sometimes, you just want a plate of scrambled eggs cooked in a lot of butter, with some salt and pepper, and please hold the truffle oil and shaved cave-aged cheese, and ancient grain toast.

I want that kind of food all the time, just like you. It's just true that simpler is better, usually when it comes to food.

Of course, there are exeptions. I would give a rib to be dining at the Fat duck once in my life, but that's a whole different ballgame.

 

[caseydog]

Not entirely sure but I have the feeling that you are going a bit over since not me and not even Windigo wanted to underrate diner food neither to compare it to restaurant (we both know the difference).
It exists also here although the menus are not infinite.
You can call the dogs back now, thanks.

A lot of people in other countries, especially Europe like to make jokes about American food. But, American food covers a lot of ground, from gourmet meals at white tablecloth restaurants, to diners and cafes with 1960s decor and cheap food that just hits the spot.

One point I have been trying to make is that you can have a 40 item breakfast menu, and still have fresh ingredients and good cooking. Your kitchen just needs to be set up for that kind of cooking, and the cooks have to be experienced in that kind of cooking. It has to be your specialty.

At Waffle House, the kitchen is open and in full view. You can watch your food being cooked. Their cooks are amazing to watch, as they prepare five made-to-order plates of food at one time -- with no written tickets. The waitstaff just verbally calls out the order, and the cook makes it.

I'll let Anthony take it from here...

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bct8stbZafI


CD

 

[MypinchofItaly]

A lot of people in other countries, especially Europe like to make jokes about American food. But, American food covers a lot of ground, from gourmet meals at white tablecloth restaurants, to diners and cafes with 1960s decor and cheap food that just hits the spot.

One point I have been trying to make is that you can have a 40 item breakfast menu, and still have fresh ingredients and good cooking. Your kitchen just needs to be set up for that kind of cooking, and the cooks have to be experienced in that kind of cooking. It has to be your specialty.

At Waffle House, the kitchen is open and in full view. You can watch your food being cooked. Their cooks are amazing to watch, as they prepare five made-to-order plates of food at one time -- with no written tickets. The waitstaff just verbally calls out the order, and the cook makes it.

I'll let Anthony take it from here...

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bct8stbZafI


CD

If you are referring to me too with people in other Countries especially from Europe, you are barking at the wrong tree! 👋🏻

 

[Yorky]

A lot of people in other countries, especially Europe like to make jokes about American food. But, American food covers a lot of ground, from gourmet meals at white tablecloth restaurants, to diners and cafes with 1960s decor and cheap food that just hits the spot.

I can't remember having a breakfast in America but of the food that I did eat, the chilli con carne was bland but the beef burger with pickled jalapenos and the topside steaks were exceptional.