Diners – retro or modern?

Personally I prefer retro over modern because I believe that they are more unique and special.

I have been to a few and want to find more if there are any to find! They have become almost obsolete and I find that to be a tragedy!

Feeling nostalgic for the good ol’ days at the 50s diner. Step into the 50s with a milkshake in hand and a rockin’ jukebox. Living in a 50s diner daydream.

Retro vibes, sipped through a straw. One word: Dinerishous! Bringing vintage charm and a hearty appetite to the 21st century.

My taste buds are stuck in the 50s, and I’m perfectly okay with it. Diner dates and vintage plates.

Bobby socks, poodle skirts, and diner dates for life.

‘Sippin’ on a milkshake, underneath the neon lights’ – Retro Vibes

‘Milkshake kisses and 50s wishes’ – Nostalgic Melodies

‘Dancing in the diner, like it’s 1955’ – Shake Shack Boogie

I have been to this diner and it has become a favorite after one visit! It is beautiful inside and the food is delicious!

I will be going back as soon as I can!

‘Retro beats and diner treats, that’s all I need’ – Music Memories

‘Savoring the taste of nostalgia, one diner song at a time’ – Vintage Melodies

‘Sometimes the simplest things in life bring the greatest joy, like a cherry pie from the local diner’

Wayne’s diner is also on my list!

I enjoyed chicken tenders and fries at this location and of course a vanilla shake! 🍟🍦

There’s no better feeling than being transported back in time at a retro diner.

Nostalgia is the secret sauce that makes diner food taste even better.

Gus’s diner is on my list of favorites! It’s near to where my daughter lives which places it higher on that list🤣

The nourishment was delicious and the serving size is quite big! Been here a few times and will go back again!

Travel back in time with every bite and enjoy the retro flavors.

A poet could write volumes about diners, because they’re so beautiful. They’re brightly lit, with chrome and booths and Naugahyde and great waitresses. Now, it might not be so great to some, but I think diner food is really worth experiencing periodically.

Next in list is Joey’s diner.

This diner dishes are so yummy! I go to enjoy a meal when I go to shop at the antique shops located nearby.

There’s a safety in thinking in a diner. You can have your burger, fries and your milkshake, and you can go off into strange dark areas, and always come back to the safety of the diner.

Burn One, Take It Through the Garden and Pin a Rose On It

Don’t be alarmed when you order a hamburger and hear this called out instead. “Burn one” refers to dropping the burger in the grill, and “taking it through the garden” means topping it with lettuce and tomato. Your burger is then finished with the most fragrant of roses: the onion. (I would say no to the onions🤪)

Big boy!

What can I say? I was so ecstatic to come across this diner more that I can express on our trip to Michigan! Brought back childhood memories of dining there with my family! Absolutely the best!! ❤️

Shingle with a Shimmy and Shake

Besides being an excellent tongue-twister, this phrase is a cheeky way to call out for buttered toast with jam. Hopefully, your toast is a little more tender than a roof tile.

Lola’s Diner

Lools yummy doesn’t it? You can just smell the aroma of french toast can’t you?

Cowboy with Spurs

While I wouldn’t mind sitting down across from a cowboy, this actually means a Western (or Denver) omelet with french fries. I know. I’m disappointed, too. 

Houseboat

This quirky term refers to a banana split, named such because of their resemblance to the nomadic homestead. Banana splits have been an American classic since their invention in 1904 in Latrobe, Pennsylvania, which still holds the Great American Banana Split Celebration to this day.

Drag One Through Wisconsin

Drag anything through Wisconsin and it’s bound to pick up some of this ingredient—cheese! (See our top Wisco recipes here.) Wisconsin isn’t the only place your diner is dragging things—”drag one through the garden” means putting all the condiments on it, and “drag one through Georgia” is a weird phrase for the even weirder beverage: cola with chocolate syrup.

Adam and Eve On a Raft

This is possibly one of the better-known diner terms, referring to two eggs on toast. But the dynamic duo inspired a whole slew of breakfast terms, like “Adam and Eve on a log” for eggs and sausage, or “Adam and Eve on a raft and wreck ’em” for scrambled eggs and toast. Poor Adam and Eve, what a precarious lifestyle!

Twist It, Choke It, and Make It Cackle

Wow! Diners sure are violent! Don’t be afraid, your server is just ordering a chocolate malt with an egg. Although the term does serve as an excellent warning to any would-be dine-and-dashers.

Stretch One and Paint It Red

More violence?! No, it’s just another way to ask for a coke with cherry syrup. Back in the ’60s and ’70s, Coca-Cola used to sell “stretched” bottles of their soda, which were over a foot tall.

Blue Plate Special

Most diners will have a daily special meal called the “Blue Plate Special,” available at a lower price. Legend has it that this meal got its name from plates sold during The Depression, which had separate compartments for different foods and were only available in the color blue.

First Lady

Wow, Eve is really making a name for herself in diner lingo. A sly reference to Eve’s purported creation from Adam’s extra rib, this does indeed refer to—you guessed it—spare ribs.

Drown the Kids

Yikes. Sometimes diner terms have a dark side. Even if the phrase is just a way to tell the chef to boil the eggs, still gonna back away from this one…very…slowly…

Foreign Entanglements

Who knew a plate of spaghetti would require so much diplomacy? However, if you’re ordering it with meatballs, you’ll want to get the “lead pipes with rounded cows.

Paint a Bow-Wow Red

If you want a hot dog with ketchup, then you want to “paint a bow-wow red,” and with sauerkraut is a “bloodhound in the hay.” But if you’re ordering it with mustard, you want that “baby sauce.” Baby sauce and relish? “Mickey Rooney.” “Mickey Rooney” no relish? “Cut the grass.” So on, so forth. 

Bucket of Hail

Order a glass of ice, get a bucket of hail. Hey, at least it’s all-natural and straight from the source. But if you want water, well then my friend you’re gonna need that “city water.” Love eating out?

Give It Shoes

Alternatively “Go for a walk,” this is the call-out to make your order to-go. Although, you might want to give your food a good sniff before you eat it to make sure the cook didn’t miss the metaphor.

The Twins

If you need to season up for your food, you’ll need to ask for The Twins: salt and pepper, of course! Thinking a little more garlic? That’ll be the Bronx Vanilla.

Hope you enjoyed some of the diner lingo I was able to share with you. You can now say that you have learned some “Dinerese!”