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In our last email Napkin Notes newsletter, we called out for contributions from our readers, and Rick Savard responded. Since 1979, Rick has owned and operated Savard’s Family Restaurant at 601 N. Franklin Street in Watkins Glen, New York. With 29 years in the business behind him, we figured Rick could do a far better job than we could telling the tales from the food service trenches. We hope to bring you Rick’s column every month. Let us know what you think.
Get the kids to the diner
- Category: In the Trenches
- Published on Friday, 17 August 2012 08:31
SouthCoastToday.com just posted a bit-too-late story about the closing of Al Mac's Diner in Fall River, Massachusetts. While we all know by now of the diner's demise, the article contained this juicy little nugget:
As time marched on, the diner lost more and more of its most faithful patrons, Gauthier said.
"We have some loyal customers, but every time there's an obituary in the paper, there goes another," Gauthier said. "I don't know what next month brings."
This comment points to a serious problem facing all-too-many diners, old and new, across the country: Their aging clientele. If any long-running restaurant forgets how to cater to and attract younger customers, then they number their days. Where do Millenials and Gen-Xers go to eat these days? Are they looking for heaping piles of meat loaf? Maybe they are, but maybe they'd like fresher, more natural alternatives. Maybe they want an espresso.
Why is it getting so warm, and why are we in a hand-basket?
- Category: In the Trenches
- Published on Sunday, 08 March 2009 15:05
With all the upheaval we've so far endured and can continue to expect, I find myself wondering what perspective Roadside Magazine might take in the face of it all. Published with optimism, but peppered with appropriate cynical reminders of the ignorance and incompetence that threatens all that we love and cherish, Roadside would attempt to soldier through this economic maelstrom. Indeed, as we've seen historically, the diner has repeatedly proven itself a survivor in a difficult economy. People still have to eat, and good diners that serve good meals at reasonable prices will always attract people looking for a high-value, low-cost pampering. That, coupled with the fact that no one in their right mind would want to buy a restaurant in this environment or develop the land upon which it sits generally meant that the neighborhood diner would probably stay put until conditions improve.
"The American Diner Museum and I are now enemies"
- Category: In the Trenches
- Published on Sunday, 31 August 2008 20:00
A friend of the magazine pointed us to this recent blog entry. We recommend especially that you read the comments should you venture over to the originating website.
I've mentioned before my love (or rather need) for watching travel documentaries. Well, I was perusing the ol' library stacks a while looking for something about India, when I came across a travel documentary about Rhode Island. What better way to get to know your new home, than to watch a low-budget movie about it? I thought. So I got it, and watched it, and that has already come in handy because on Sunday I went and watched the ceremonial burning of the H.M.S. Gaspee (more on that later). The DVD (yes, it was actually a DVD), also included a glimpse of The American Diner Museum in Lincoln, RI. ...
Finally, we found the museum, and found it to be closed. There were no posted hours on the building, nor did the recording give me any when I called them. So we went home. The following day, I found their website which promises: "Visitors to the Museum's permanent home will be able learn the history of the diner through interactive video and exhibits commemorating the numerous diner manufacturers. The Museum's reference library will provide access to manufacturers' literature and records, a registry of diners and a collection of photographs and artifacts."
Except there are no posted hours on the website either. So I sent them a politely worded email. I thought maybe, it's only open during the summer months, and we had visited too early. So I called them, and left a politely-worded voicemail explaining that I'm new to the area, saw the museum on a travel documentary, and would simply love to come visit if they would only tell me when I can actually get into the building. No response.
Now, I have to ask, what is the point of having a museum that no one can visit? Do I need to be a part of a documentary crew in order to get inside? Someone must be paying the phone bill, so why is he or she not checking messages? Read the rest.
Immigrant Status
- Category: In the Trenches
- Published on Monday, 21 July 2008 22:12
A protest rally took place in Philadelphia on Valentine's Day in 2006 in demonstration against a proposed anti-immigration law now before Congress. What made the event noteworthy was that most of the participants were the targets of the legislation, and that these protesters mostly worked in area restaurants. As a follower of the diner industry, this issue hits close to home, since I see an increasing number of these "illegal immigrants" working in the diners I visit.