Ed, Emmy, Lily and I sat in a row at the green Formica counter in the small diner. We had been driving home from the late church service and I pulled into the parking lot for one reason: I was starving. Actually, I had two reasons; I felt the beginnings of a cold coming on, and so I didn’t want to rustle up lunch myself once we got home.

Coffee, served hot

Eating at a diner made me want to order a cup of coffee, but since I had already had plenty that morning, I stuck with a ham and cheese omelet. Lily and Emmy had a front seat view of the grill, and watching the short order cooks make their French toast fascinated them. Watching the cook tossing scrambled eggs into the air and flip pancakes was almost as entertaining as a Japanese steakhouse and much more affordable. The two cooks knew their jobs and worked together to get the orders done and out to the customer. Ed said his chicken wrap was so hot right off the grill that he had to let it sit for a couple of minutes to cool down. My omelet tasted the same as the one I used to order at a different diner in a different town. Simple, yet delicious.

There wasn’t much of a chance for conversation. Sitting by the grill was noisy, and being all in the row made it difficult to talk anyway. The waitress was friendly and got our order right, although she wasn’t young and was a little bossy in a diner sort of way. What is it about a diner that I love? (It’s definitely not the coffee.) Is it the cooking? Is it the “mom and pop” feeling?  I’m not sure. But I do know I’m always on the lookout for a good diner. The next time I stop in, I’ll be sure to order the ham and cheese omelet with hash browns. And perhaps we’ll sit at a booth instead.

What’s your favorite diner food?