Diners in Watertown

I’m a Jersey girl…NJ has got to be the diner capitol of the world. When living in the San Francisco Bay Area, I was constantly in search of a decent diner. Most were kitschy 50s retro diners with overpriced menu items. I once recall paying $9 for grilled cheese. Alameda had two good diners, and the only genuine diners in the area. There was Tillie’s which was inexpensive and only a block from my apartment, and Jim’s which was expensive for diner fare, but quality food.

The Boston area lacks diners. And the diners that exist aren’t true diners to me, because they are generally only open for breakfast and lunch.

Most of the area diners seem to be in Watertown.

My favorite diner is Deluxe Town Diner, or simply “DTD” as Matt and I affectionately call it. It’s a cozy little diner in a trailer and it often gets packed on weekends. This diner is actually open for dinner too…I think it closes at eleven. Anyway, this place is great. They have a huge menu and lots of great stuff for breakfast and lunch. They also offer a $10 hamburger made of free range beef. (Awesome) It’s a little more expensive than the diners I’ll list below (a bagel and lox platter is $9.99, but worth it — they use good lox!)

On Friday and Saturday nights, The New York Diner opens back up at 11 PM and stays open until 4 AM. I’ve only made use of this once, after a night out with friends. I had the grilled cheese. (Which wasn’t $9!) The food is okay, but it’s cheap. And I like the fact that it’s open so late. It’s the only place in the area that does something like that…the Brighton IHOP is open 24 hours, but…yuck.

Then there’s The Talk of the Town Diner at 11 N Beacon St. A sign outside boasts that it was voted best breakfast in Boston. I went there once and I might try it again, but I would certainly never order an omelette there again. It was burnt, thin…and gross. At first I thought it was a pancake. My OMELETTE looked like a PANCAKE. So wrong.

Also in Watertown Square, there is Tresca’s Eating Place. I’ve gone there a handful of times. It’s right across a parking lot from my bank, so a few times I’ve even ordered a sandwich to go. Their food is decent, but a serious turn-off is that if you order something with syrup they just plop a container of Stop & Shop brand syrup on the table. I rarely order things that need syrup unless I bring my own (preferably from Vermont!), but still…can’t they put it in a better container? The waitstaff is sometimes surly. But it’s inexpensive. It’s very green inside too.

Hmmm…there’s another cool diner on North Beacon. Can’t remember the name. It’s more like a luncheonette, but I guess so is Tresca’s Eating Place. OH! It’s Victor’s Diner and it’s located at 214 N Beacon St. I like this place…it’s cozy, inexpensive, and all of their coffee mugs are mismatched. Cute.

Mmm, now I’m hungry for diner food!

Filed under Greater Boston (General), Greater Boston Restaurants, Things to do in the Boston Area, food |