The Inconvenient Diner Critics

Bethlehem Diner Allentown, PA

2012-01-20T15:50:00.000-08:00

Bethlehem Diner

1881 Catasauqua Road

Allentown, PA

I was cautiously optimistic one evening looking for food up in the Lehigh Valley and took a drive over to check this place out. When I walked in however I was greeted by friendly staff who sat me right down and served me right away. Being cautious of course I ordered a hamburger deluxe and when it came out was very good, the fries nice and crispy and I got all the sides I needed to top the burger. Overall it was a good experience.

Sherbans Diner South Plainfield, NJ

2012-01-20T15:39:00.001-08:00

Sherbans Diner

222 Front St

South Plainfield, NJ

Status: Blacklisted

We were out exploring Central Jersey one afternoon and decided on stopping here for lunch. When we walked in the server seemed a little crabby as if we had bothered her from something and sat us in a place far from where we asked to sit. The inside was dimly lit and I noticed several stains in the carpet and dirt on some of the walls. Ordering took slow (and it was after the lunch rush so there was not much of a crowd) and when it came the chicken fingers deluxe I ordered tasted a little off. It wasn't real chicken tenders but that processed stuff I absolutely HATE! In fact I recall having to cut out veins in it. The fries were very bland tasting and had no flavor. My tag team partner had gotten a cheeseburger deluxe and judging by the way he looked he didn't like it that much. Even the "dire emergency only" foods sucked so I wouldn't recommend this dive at all!

Parkway Diner Elmwood Park, NJ

2012-01-15T19:48:00.000-08:00

Parkway Diner

260 US Highway RT46 East

Elmwood Park, NJ

Status: Blacklisted

Date 2008

Another disappointment on RT46. (Like most diners on this Godforsaken highway) My tag team partner and I visited the Parkway Diner back in early 2008. It was a typical weekend day, come lunchtime we had to decide what we wanted to do for food. So the Parkway Diner it was. We both had Cheeseburger Deluxes and we were both dissappointed. The burgers had very little taste and the fries were overdone. The waitress then kept trying to push us to get desert earning this diner a blacklisted status not to mention a reduced tip.

Village Pizza Ridgefield Park, NJ

2012-01-15T19:33:00.000-08:00

Village Pizza

9 Mount Vernon St

Ridgefield Park, NJ

Status: Blacklisted

Date Blacklisted 7/2011

Village Pizza opened in 2011 and one day in July of 2011 we decided to give it a try. Village Pizza was dissappointing to say the very least. The Pizza wasnt very good, not much in the way of taste at all and it was overdone. So were the garlic knots. They were as hard as rocks. My tag team partner ordered baked ziti. The sauce was more a white sauce than a marinara and there were onions on the ziti as well. I dont think these people know how to make Italian food. Needless to say this place is BLACKLISTED. The only thing I might do since its close to the tracks where we hang out is buy a slice and a soda if I REALLY have to use the bathroom!!

Meadowlands Diner

2012-01-14T20:15:00.000-08:00

Meadowlands Diner

320 RT17 S

Carlstadt, NJ

Status: Approved

A little weathered around the edges. Not too crazy about the plastic glasses and they need to fix the roof and replace some ceiling tiles. Otherwise the place was clean. Bottom line is they have good food, good service and at a good price. Rated two forks up and a belch.

Italian Connection/aka Bonga Pizza

2012-01-14T19:37:00.000-08:00

Italian Connection

55 West Shore Ave

Dumont, NJ

Status: Approved

The Italian Connection, aka Bonga Pizza is a great place for Italian food. From Italian Combo heroes, to Baked, Lasagna, to Veal and everything in between, They knock it out of the ballpark EVERY time. Food portions are ALWAYS generous, heck their pizzas are so big, I cant eat more than two slices!! They are like the size of a full size wheel cover from the 1970's. Full size heroes are so big you have to wrap up half and take em' home. Thats why we call it Bonga pizza!! Good food, generous portions and at a great price. Italian Connection is rated two forks up and a belch!!

Hearth Family Resturaunt

2012-01-14T19:15:00.000-08:00

Hearth Family Resturaunt

2550 Cumberland St (PA RT422)

Lebanon, Pa

Status: BLACKLISTED

Date Blacklisted 6/12/2011

We were out on a fantrip to the Harrisburg Line and Middle Division. Well, noontime came around and we needed some food. We decided to give the Hearth Family Resturaunt a try, BIG MISTAKE. The food was not that great and to top it off, both the employees and patrons of this establishment treated us as if we came from outer space or something. It was like there was the good ol fashioned needle scratch and everything came to a halt when we walked in the door. They were just plain rude. The waitress was just unfriendly and the other patrons stared at us till we left. Bad service, lackluster food and bad clientele=BLACKLISTED!! Stay away from this place. I am surprised no one tried to kill us and nothing clawed its way out of our stomachs like the creature from spaceballs. There will be NO re-evaluation if this establishment!

Ten 45 Grille/Diner

2012-01-14T18:38:00.000-08:00

Ten 45 Grille (Formerly the Tiffany Diner)

1045 RT17S

Ramsey, NJ

Status: BLACKLISTED

Date Blacklisted 12/25/2011

This diner is one that I normally blacklist on sight alone. Its just cheesey looking as hell. But here I was, looking for food on Christmas night. After checking some of the usual haunts, I found myself driving down RT17 looking for someplace that was open....ANYPLACE that was open. The Ten 45 was the only place I could find after twenty minutes of driving. This place was certainly gaudy and I had some reservations but my stomach was growling. The first thing I noticed was this place had changed hands. I remembered that it was once the Tiffany Diner. I guess too many people had blacklisted it as the Tiffany so they either changed the name or sold it to new owners. The change was not for the better. The place had certainly gone downhill. The inner doors had been removed so when the outer doors were opened, the cold winter air rushed into the dining area. There were numerous stains on the ceiling from roof leaks. The decor seemed dated and worn. The hostess wasnt the friendliest, I placed my order. A cheeseburger deluxe, medium well and pancakes and bacon for my mother. Add to that two slices of layer cake for desert. I should have known it was going to turn out bad when the hostess asked if I wanted lettuce and tomato with my cheeseburger deluxe. After all Lettuce and tomato is generally standard with a cheeseburger deluxe!!! After waiting what seemed forever. I got my order and drove home. The cheeseburger wasnt the greatest, the fries were horrible. I got indigestion soon after eating. The lettuce was not fresh, the tomato looked rotten. I threw them out. There was no mystery slaw, but judging how bad the lettuce and tomato was, that was probably for the best. There was plenty of pancakes but they also werent the best. We got NO condiments at all. No ketchup, No salt, No syrup, No butter. Talk about CHEAP!!! Then came the desert. The layer cake was what I would call a lying queen slice. Geez, could they spare it??? It was paper thin. Literally a slice less than an inch thick!!! To top it off, it was STALE and tasteless. What a disappointment!! Needless to say, the Ten 45 is BLACKLISTED!! I would have been better off microwaving a TV dinner!! I should have listened to my gut and tried somewhere else!!! There shall be no re-evaluation of this establishment!!!

2012-01-14T17:02:00.000-08:00

The Heritage Diner: River St. Hackensack, NJ

This diner is the inspiration for me to start critiquing diners across NJ, NY and PA. Here friends and myself have suffered some of the worst service at a diner. Just ordering something like a hamburger deluxe was a big production. Some of the waitresses were very rude towards patrons and I recall just being yelled at for my order. When the order came the burger tasted very bland and even though I asked for a well done it had pink in the middle. The french fries some were undercooked and others over cooked. Just about the only thing that was edible was the pickle! I also recall there were stains in the rugs and the restrooms were atrocious looking with toilet paper all over the floor, I may have ate there twice and that was it I said it was blacklisted!

2012-01-14T16:56:00.000-08:00

The Tick Tock Diner, Route 46 West: Clifton, NJ

I must say this is one of the absolute best diners to go to in NJ. Even though it's constantly packed they make room for you and manage to find a seat! From burgers to chicken fingers to steaks all the food is good on the menu. I haven't had a bad experience in there, the staff is friendly and quick I might add too! Definitely APPROVED!

2012-01-14T16:45:00.000-08:00

The Summerdale Diner: Route 11&15 Enola, PA.

Back in 2009 I was in there with a friend for dinner and had gotten a NY Strip steak with rice and a baked potato. The service wasn't too bad but the place featured plastic drinking glasses (a sign of cheapness) but I had thought nothing of it at the time. The service wasn't the fastest for how empty the place was and I wasn't to thrilled with it either. When the food came the steak itself tasted a little bland. I like my steaks well done but a good diner would still leave some juice for flavoring. The corn tasted like it was microwave and hardly had any flavor either. The most odious of all when I walked into the restroom one of the cooks came out of the stall and just walked out with OUT washing his hands!! I was so appalled I walked out looked at my friend and said "we're out of here". So we paid and that was it, for a health code violation from the COOK.... BLACKLISTED!

Oakland DIner: DIRE EMERGENCIES ONLY

2010-05-17T17:29:00.001-07:00

Establishment: Oakland Diner

Address: 72 Ramapo Valley Road Oakland NJ

Status: Dire Emergencies Only

Reason: Original Establisment Hillside Diner Blacklisted 2007

The Oakland Diner, Formerly The Hillside Diner has always had good food, but had terrible service back in 07. A waiter and busboy I have knicknamed Mutt and Jeff acted like serving customers was a hassle instead of their job Mutt would sit at the counter reading a newspaper and you could hear him sigh the minute anyone walked in the door. It was because of the horrible service that Mutt would seldom get tipped. One night became the straw that broke the camel's back. While Jeff, the busboy was giving us our food he knocked a drink into my friends lap and almost got his phone. Both Mutt and Jeff acted like they did nothing wrong and the proprietor had a lousy attitude as well. His response was "what do you want me to do about it? Oh send me the bill for cleaning his pants" What do we want you to do about it?? How bout a free meal?? How about an apology?? That was it, The Hillside Diner was blacklisted. It has now changed hands and became the Oakland Diner. Have gotten takeout and the food is decent but who knows if Mutt and Jeff are still employed there. For that reason the Oakland Diner is Dire Emergencies Only and thats for takeout!!

Franks Pizza APPROVED!!

2010-05-17T17:19:00.000-07:00

Establishment: Franks Pizza

Location: Copper Tree Mall, Oakland, NJ

Status: APPROVED

Whether its pizza, garlic knots, one of the numerous rolls, sandwiches or entrees, Franks Pizza knocks it out of the ballpark. Good food and friendly service too. Franks Pizza gets two forks up and a belch!

Coach House Diner...Blacklisted!!!

2009-12-21T17:50:00.000-08:00

Establishment: Coach House Diner

Address: 55 Route 4 East, Hackensack, NJ

Date Blacklisted: 12/21/2009

Well, today I must have had the WORST experience in a NJ diner....Ever. Had diner at the Coach House Diner in Hackensack, NJ First of all the food was over priced. Add to that lousy service. This sad excuse for a waiter could not even take our soda order without forgetting who ordered what. Then as he is serving us, he answers his cell phone while just handing our food to us instead of putting it on the table for us. At that point it was decided that he would get no tip. As we were leaving, he asks, "what, no tip??" With that a complaint was made to the hostess. Thats it, the Coach House is BLACKLISTED!! Rotten service and overpriced food will NOT be tolerated!!

Sleazy!

2009-04-06T23:34:00.000-07:00

Establishment: Ridgefield Park Diner

Address: 36 Mount Vernon Street, Ridgefield Park, NJ

Date Blacklisted 3/22/2009

If there is one word to describe the Ridgefield Park Diner, that word is sleazy. What a dump! My tag team partner and I decided the Ridgefield Park Diner was up for re-evaluation so we took a chance and dined there for lunch. Boy were we sorry. Right off the bat, I noticed that the carpet had not been shampooed in ages. You could literally see the dirt stained into the carpet where people walk and the carpet is black!! My tag team partner looking at the carpet commented that they should replace the carpet instead of cleaning it as it was worn through in spots. There was food scraps on the floor, ketchup stains on the wall next to me and there were many stains in the ceiling tiles where the roof is obviously leaking. My tag team partner commented that the ceiling tiles appeared to have mold/mildew on them as well. The fake flowers had a ton of dust on them. This establishment obviously does not believe in cleaning!! So we ordered. I ordered a cheeseburger deluxe with a diet Coke and my tag team partner ordered a bacon cheeseburger deluxe with a Coke. We got our soda and it was flat! Then my tag team partner noticed that the soda machine was out of service and they were filling soda orders from bottles. The cheeseburger was greasy and not very good, and the fries were overdone. Neither one of us were brave enough to try the lettuce, tomato or mystery slaw. So the verdict? Bad food and a dirty establishment?? BLACKISTED!! There will be only one thing that will warrant a re-evaluation... Obvious signs of renovations and a sign saying "UNDER NEW MANAGEMENT"!!

Update 10/13/2009:

The Ridgefield Park Diner has thankfully closed. Message in door says that "They took over the diner at the wrong time." It wasnt the timing that killed the place, it was the dirty premesis and the bad food!! Maybe the local board of health had something to do with its closing??

Another Blacklist

2009-03-24T08:53:00.000-07:00

Establishment: Phoenicia Diner

Address: 5681 Rt 28, Phoenicia , NY

Blacklisted 8/1996

Ok , here is the story of how the Phoenicia Diner got blacklisted. My father, my stepmother, and I were travelling up to see the Catskill Mountain Railroad and Delaware and Ulster Rail Ride. On the way we wanted to get a bite to eat and stopped at the Phoenicia Diner. At the time, the parking lot was not paved. Looking at the photo I found, this his since been rectified. The place reeked of the late 1960's to 1970's. The interior was a naugahyde lovers delight. I at the time wondered how many nauga's gave their all to furnish the establishment. The hostess seemed at bit creepy, and we were seated. I ordered a bagel with cream cheese and a Coke, something that cant really be screwed up. Our food was served. The bagel was the usual Lenders type bagel, toasted with the usual specimen cup of cream cheese. They used plastic glasses which I dont really care for, but seem standard for lower end diners. Thats not what got the place blacklisted. It was the hostess passing behind us as we were eating saying "Yummy Yummy In the Tummy!" Talk about REALLY creepy!! Would something claw its way out of my stomach in few hours?? AAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!! Blacklisted!! Check Please!! Oh, and no, there will be NO re-evaluation of this establishment!!

Story of the Decoven Diner, Cove Pa

2009-03-22T20:06:00.000-07:00

Establishment: Decoven Diner

Address: Rt 11&15 Cove, Pa

Blacklisted: 4/2003

Ah yes, can remember the day I blacklisted the Decoven Diner. (The photo of which is on the top of this blog) A one time friend and I went to have a little fun at another "friend's" expense out in Cove, Pa. Once we found this person we hung out and it became time for lunch. This person we had met suggested the Decoven Diner. Here it was 12 noon on the dot and there was only one car in the parking lot and the place just looked sleazy. That warranted an instant blacklist. Apparently the people of Perry County felt the same as I did since the Decovan is no more, It closed, was torn down and now is a vacant lot. But thats not the only place in the area thats blacklisted. Do NOT eat any sandwiches out of the Sheetz in Cove, Pa!! My tag team partner ate a pork sandwich out of there and was sick for days. Perry County so far is not looking like a very good place for food. :-P (Barf)

Welcome

2009-03-22T19:35:00.000-07:00

I would like to welcome all(well those that are literate) to "The Inconvenient Diner Critics" blog. We've traveled all over North Jersey and Eastern Pennsylvania to find good food, and a lot of times we end up with places that don't exactly meet our criteria. My tag team partner and I have "blacklisted" hundreds of diners on the area and are not afraid to keep going! We have found good establishments and will recognize them accordingly! We also like to hear YOUR stories of any blacklisted diners and see if they can compare to ours. Sit back, grab a cup of coffee and read our reviews of what's "Approved" and what is not!