Running and Laughing through the Garden State
One of my favorite fruits is apricots. From snacking on dried apricots to eating them raw, I’ve been enjoying them for years. It wasn’t until recently I learned more about Apricots and how many health benefits they truly have. Apricots resemble a peach but tastes more like plum. There is a single pit and they are often slightly crunchy. Dried apricots are fruity and slightly gummy.
Continue reading “The Benefits of Apricots”
Holy smokes, when we moved to New Jersey in 2013, I had no idea a diner quest was in my future. I had been to a few diners like a normal person, but I certainly didn’t go out of my way to go to diners…but now here I am 300 New Jersey Diners later. I’ve been to diners about 100 diners in other states as well.
The Broadway Diner in Summit is my 300th New Jersey diner! YAY! The diner trip itself was unplanned and uneventful. I didn’t throw a happy 300th diner celebration and it was honestly one of the more quiet diner trips I had. Which is fine. Had I known this would be my last diner trip for a long time, I would have made it more eventful!
The Summit Diner is one of the most iconic and well known diners in New Jersey. It’s been featured on several best diner lists and even ranked in many national lists. I’m surprised it’s taken me this long to get there. I was in Summit for the day and decided to stop at the Summit Diner.
Summit Diner Atmosphere: A
You can’t get a more perfect old school, retro diner. It sticks out on the main street of Summit. The entire town of Summit is a cute downtown and the Summit Diner looks like a blast from the past sitting on the main street. You can’t miss it.
The inside of the Summit Diner has about 8 booths and 15 bar stools. I chose a barstool right in front of the register.
Summit Diner Coffee: B
The Summit Diner coffee tasted good. Since it’s a low key, no-frills diner, the coffee was similar. It got the job done.
Summit Diner Food: A
The Summit Diner menu is written on the top of the diner. You can read it all while sitting. Since the Summit Diner is known for their great food, I had no idea what I wanted to order. I was between breakfast and ultimately decided to order their greek salad wrap lunch special.
The Summit Diner lunch specials came with soup and I chose Clam Chowder.
I like Manhatten Clam Chowder and it was better than most diner soups I’ve had. The Manhatten Clam Chowder had a nice kick to it.
My lunch special also came with french fries which I didn’t realize. The Greek Salad wrap tasted good and I have no complaints. There was plenty of actual salad and it was wrapped in a way I could eat it. Wraps are often hard to eat but the wrap at the Summit Diner was wrapped perfectly so it wasn’t messy.
The french fries tasted good and they were crispy but not overly crispy.
In all, my meal at the Summit Diner was great and I was happy with it.
Summit Diner Service: B
You have the choice to either sit in or to go and it appears the Summit Diner does about half of each. The man who took my order looked to be a manager. He was friendly and my food came out within 15 minutes.
Cost: $
For my Greek Salad Wrap Lunch Special and coffee it was $11.50, which was one of the most expensive items you could get.
Overall Thoughts/Would I Go Back?
I liked the Summit Diner and I can see why it’s considered one of the best diners in the state. It’s definitely one of my more favorite diners.
Atmosphere: A
Coffee: B
Food: A
Service: A
Cost: $5-12
Overall: A
Questions for you:
Have you ever ordered a lunch special?
What’s the last retro diner you’ve been too?
Recently I was in Highland Park and I decided to stop at the White Rose Hamburgers. I’ve been to a few White Rose Diners and White Rose System (Roselle), White Diamond and White Rose Diner (Linden).
Why are there so many diners with the name White in them? According to Munchmobile, when diners were first starting, “white” meant cleanliness and wholesomeness. Most diners with the color white are also older. Some even resemble hamburger stands.
In light of current events, I ordered takeout at the White Rose Hamburgers.
White Rose Hamburgers(Highland Park) Atmosphere: A
The White Rose Hamburgers looks like an old school diner and everything you want in a diner. The White Rose Hamburgers parking lot is bigger than the White Rose Hamburgers itself. Inside, there are about 15 seats, which are mostly booth seats. The White Rose Hamburgers is a retro diner that you picture in diners.
White Rose Hamburgers (Highland Park) Coffee: B
The White Rose Hamburgers serves regular coffee. It’s no-frills and no whipped cream, but it was good.
White Rose Hamburgers (Highland Park) Food: B
The White Rose Hamburgers menu is small and located all on the back of the diner. You order at the register and then sit down wherever you want. The White Rose Hamburgers more resembles a hamburger joint than a New Jersey Diner. There are plenty of menu options, including eggs, burgers, and gyros. They are known for their pork rolls or taylor ham (whatever you prefer to call it). I wasn’t sure what I was in the mood for and decided to order a beef gyro.
The beef gyro was no-frills and to go. It didn’t even come with a side (which was fine). It almost felt like I ordered at a fast food place because I ordered and within 2 minutes, it was out.
My beef gyro was good and I have no complaints. It was the typical gyro but stuffed with tzatziki sauce. The tzatziki sauce oozed out. It all, it was one of the better beef gyros I’ve had. There were no sides, but
White Rose Hamburgers (Highland Park) Service: B
The White Rose Hamburgers isn’t a typical diner. You don’t have a host or waiter. It’s just one person taking the orders and the chefs cooking it. They were all friendly.
White Rose Hamburgers (Highland Park) Cost: $
For my coffee and meal, it was $10.
Overall Thoughts/Would I Come Back to the White Rose Hamburgers (Highland Park)?
I liked the White Rose Hamburgers and it’s a cheap, fun stop. If you’re looking for a no-frills, greasy stop, it’s definitely worth your while.
You can see all 298 Diners Here.
Questions for you:
Do you like beef gyros?
What’s the last no-frill spot you’ve gone?