56 Diner (Branford, CT)

August 18, 2019 By Hollie in Diners Tags: coffee, connecticut, Diner, food, menu, pork chops 1 Comment

After the Sea Legs 10 Miler, I decided to check out a diner right on the way home. The 56 Diner in Banford, CT, is right off 95 so an easy stop.

Atmosphere: B
The 56 Diner in Banford resembles an old Friendlys, and that’s because it was.

The inside has a full-length bar. There are plenty of booths and tables.

One thing we found interesting was the menu placement. Some of the ads were upside down!

Coffee: B
The coffee was good, but there was nothing or unique.

Food: C
The 56 Diner has most diner options. There is all-day breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Omelettes served with home fries and toast, to egg salad to wraps, to pork chops, and dinner options. They also have an ice cream bar too, complete with banana splits. There are a few healthy choices as well. I decided to order the pork chops and upgrade my regular salad to a greek salad.

The Greek Salad was good. It was a nice size, and I appreciated the fresh ingredients. It came with romaine lettuce, tomatoes, olives, feta cheese, and grape leaves.

The pork chops, however, were another story. They were thin and tasted as though they were reheated. I was disappointed because pork chops are usually one of my favorite meals. The mashed potatoes appeared as though they were squeezed out of a tube.

Was my meal terrible? No. It was okay, but I wouldn’t order it again.

Service: B
It took a while for the host to sit us. Once he did, it took a while to take our orders and for the food to come out. He was friendly, but it was a lot longer than you would think.

Cost: $$
For my coffee, pork chops, and salad, it was $20.

Overall Thoughts of the 56 Diner/Would I Come Back?
The 56 Diner is ok. It’s not my favorite in the area, but it’s a good stop, especially if you are staying in one of the hotels nearby and don’t want fast food.

Atmosphere: B
Coffee: B
Food: C
Service: C
Price: $8-15
Overall: C

You Can See All Diner Reviews Here.

Questions for you:
Do you like pork chops?

Have you ever been to a Friendly’s? This is the second diner I’ve been to that was an old Friendlys.

Marlboro Diner

August 3, 2019 By Hollie in Diners Tags: coffee, Diner, food, menu, new jersey, pork chops, restaurant, review 3 Comments

Recently I wanted to get out of town, so I decided to take a drive. I wasn’t sure where but I decided Marlboro would be a fun town to visit. It’s just south of the Garden State Parkway which means I avoided summer traffic.

Atmosphere: A
The Marlboro Diner is modern and clean. There is a large diner sign. It isn’t metallic or shiny, but a modern building.

The inside is massive and has plenty of seating from booths, tables, and a full-length bar.

Coffee: B
The coffee was good, but there wasn’t anything unique or unusual about it.

Food: B
The Marlboro Diner has everything you can imagine in a diner. There is all-day breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

I decided to order the hummus appetizer and the broiled pork chop special, which came with soup, salad, and two sides.

The hummus appetizer was one of their specials, and you can never go wrong with that. It was one of the better hummus specials I’ve had. There were also carrots, which is unique.

The Broiled Pork Chops came with a lot of sides.

Since it was an option, I decided to change my side salad to a Greek side salad, and I was disappointed. The Greek salad was watery. It tasted like the greens were sitting for a while, which is why they were soggy.

For my soup, I ordered the chicken noodle. It was good but nothing out of the ordinary. There wasn’t much chicken.

The pork chops themselves were excellent. They were a bit overcooked, but they were still good. For my sides, I ordered sweet potato and broccoli, and both tasted good as well.

In all, it was a decent meal. I wished the salad was fresher and the pork chops weren’t as overdone.

Cost:
For the hummus appetizer, coffee, and meal, it was $30.

Service: A
The waitress was friendly, and my food came out quickly. In all, I have no complaints.

Overall Summary:
The Malboro Diner was good. The food was a little bit bland, but the service was excellent. I would go back if I’m in the area again.

Summary:
Atmosphere: A
Coffee: B
Food: B
Service: A
Cost: $8-20
Overall: B

You can see all 254 Diner Reviews here.

Questions for you:
Do you like pork chops?
Do you typically order soup or salad?

Caldwell Diner

July 6, 2019 By Hollie in Diners Tags: coffee, Diner, food, menu, new jersey, pork chops, review 1 Comment

A couple of weeks ago, my husband and I flew to Essex County and went to the Caldwell Diner. It was fun to make 250 unique.

Atmosphere: A
The Caldwell Diner is located in downtown Caldwell. It’s located on the corner with plenty of parking (which can be challenging with diners in the downtown).

The inside has plenty of booth, tables, a full-length bar, and even a salad bar. It’s a cute, modern, diner.

Coffee: A
The waiter brewed a brand new pot of coffee, which was nice. He also added plenty of whipped cream which I appreciated. It was good coffee, and I couldn’t have asked for better coffee.

Food: A
The Caldwell Diner has everything a diner has typically. There is all day breakfast, plenty of lunch, and dinner options, as well as specials. It even had a unique salad bar, which is something you don’t see in a lot of diners.

I decided to order the pork chops. Pork chops are one of my favorite dinner meals. It was a “complete meal” and came with the salad bar, soup, the meal, and even dessert.

The salad bar was good but could have used more dressing. The only options were ranch, oil and vinegar, Italian, and something else creamy. It had plenty of options, including two different kinds of greens, tomatoes, onions, beets, and mixed bean salad. In all, it was one of the better salad bars I’ve seen.

For my soup, I chose the barley. It was hot and creamy, and I have no complaints.

My pork chops were cooked well and were meaty. They weren’t overcooked but just the right amount. I chose broccoli and a baked potato. The entire meal was great, and I can’t complain.

Dessert: B
Since my meal came with dessert, I chose rice pudding to go. They packed it in a coffee mug, and I ate it in our airport while my husband filed the flight plan. I’ve never tried rice pudding before, so I have nothing to compare it too. It wasn’t overly sweet but good.

Service: B
Our service started slow, but the waiter got better as time went on. The food came out quickly, which was nice because we were on a time crunch.

Price: $
For my entire meal and coffee, the coffee was $17.

Overall Thoughts/Summary:
I liked my meal, and the diner was good. I would go back.

Atmosphere: A
Coffee: A
Food: A
Dessert: B
Service: B
Cost: $8-16
Overall: A

You can see all 250 Diner reviews here.

Questions for you:
Do you like pork chops?
What’s your favorite dinner meal?

Manalapan Diner

April 20, 2019 By Hollie in Diners Tags: coffee, Diner, food, menu, new jersey, pork chops, review 2 Comments

Recently I went to the Manalapan Diner. I had just taken a nice walk around the Manasquan Reservoir and decided to stop on the way home. It was around dinner time, and it was already crowded. That’s a good sign.

Atmosphere: A
The Manalapan Diner is a nice large, building with plenty of parking. It looks like a regular restaurant, and it isn’t the old school chrome you might see. The inside has plenty of booths, tables, and a bar. It looks like a stereotypical diner.

Coffee: A
The coffee was brewed hot and fresh, and the waitress brought many refills. I appreciated the cute little saucer. I have no complaints, and it was some of the better coffee I’ve had.

Food: B
The menu at the Manalapan Diner is massive, and it is hard not to find something that you were interested in.

There are all of the diner favorites like breakfast, sandwiches, and dinners. There are also unique items like steak tacos.

I decided to order off of the specials menu and got the pork chops. The entire meal was massive.

First, it came with soup and a salad. I appreciated I was able to choose a greek salad and the greek salad came with anchovies.

For my soup, I chose the seafood bisque. It was creamy, but I was disappointed in the lack of seafood. There was barely any in there, and if I had blindly guessed, I would have thought it was tomato bisque.

The pork chop was massive, but it was kind of bland. It wasn’t especially bad but lacked any flavor. It was huge though and came with mixed vegetables.

Dessert: B
My meal came with dessert, and I chose the bread pudding. The bread pudding tasted more like flan but wasn’t bad. I liked it but there wasn’t much bread, and it was more “custardy.”

Service: A
The waitress was friendly and refilled our beverages often. She was funny too which is always a plus. I have no complaints.

Cost: $
For my meal and coffee, it was $20 which was a great deal for the amount of food.

Overall Thoughts/Summary:
I liked the Manalapan Diner, and it’s a stereotypical NJ diner. I would go back if I’m in the area.

Atmosphere: A
Coffee: A
Food: B
Dessert: B
Service: A
Price: $10-20
Overall: A

You can See all 238 Diner Reviews Here.

Questions for you:
Do you like pork chops?
What is your favorite type of soup?

Old Bridge Diner

March 16, 2019 By Hollie in Diners Tags: brunch, coffee, Diner, food, new jersey, pork chops, review

Recently I was at the Old Bridge Diner with Jess. I have driven by the Old Bridge Diner a couple of times but never stopped.

View this post on Instagram

Met up with Jess at Diner 234. We were so excited that we decided to match.

A post shared by Hollie (@fueledbylolz) on Feb 22, 2019 at 5:42pm PST

Atmosphere: A
The outside is a large, shiny, metallic, diner. It looks the part of a stereotypical NJ diner. The inside has a full-length bar, plenty of booths, tables, and a small dessert case.

Coffee: B
The coffee was good, and the waitress brought plenty of refills. It was piping hot, which was nice for the cold day.

Food: B
The Old Bridge Diner has everything you would want in a NJ diner. There are plenty of breakfast options like eggs and pancakes, as well as lunch and dinner options. I noticed on the front board, the “pork chop special” so I decided to go with that. I had no idea what it came with, I just noticed the “pork chop special” and rarely turn down good pork chops.

I decided to order a small greek salad instead of the regular salad. Truthfully, the salad was somewhat plain. Not terrible, nor bad. It could have used olives or something to give it more of a “greek flair.”

My pork chops were delicious and topped with sauteed vegetables. The balsamic glaze was perfect, and they were cooked nicely. They were in the top of diner pork chops I’ve had.

My meal also came with a potato and chose baked.

Dessert: A
Since my meal came with dessert, I chose bread pudding. A unique addition to the bread pudding was the pear inside. I don’t know if I’ve ever had pear inside my bread pudding and it was great. I have no complaints.

Service: A
Our waitress was extremely friendly, and our food came out fast. Everything about the service was great.

Cost: $
For my special and coffee, the cost was $20.

Overall Thoughts/Would I Come Back?
I liked the Old Bridge Diner and would come back if the opportunity presented itself.

Atmosphere: A
Coffee: B
Food: B
Desert: A
Service: A
Cost: $15-20
Overall: A

You Can See All 234 Diner Reviews Here.

Questions for you:
Do you like pork chops?
What is your favorite dessert?

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Running and Laughing through the Garden State

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