Bridgeville Diner- Bridgeville, Delaware

I thought this would tie in nicely with my previous post. The bridgeville is a ’40s O’Mahony, a particularly large model, featuring a striped red and blue enamel and stainless exterior, with blue upper windows. I like the diagonally ribbed tile on the interior, but I’m not sure if it’s original, I’ve never seen it before. This diner is very similar to the recently restored Road Island Diner, though this one has five bands of color, while the road island has four. This exterior is a nice transition from the fully enameled exteriors shown in the previous post to the later fully stainless ones.

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Jerry O’Mahony Dining Cars

I bought this online with the intention of sharing it here. I’ve typed the copy up for easier reading. Enjoy!

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If there is anything that people are more fastidious about than the food they eat, it is the environment in which it is served. Because of this fact the modern Jerry O’Mahony dining car fulfils one of the most insistent demands of the general public.

A modern Jerry O’Mahony dining car is more than just a casual eating place, – it’s the kind of place that people enthuse about and return to frequently.

Public approval of Jerry O’Mahony dining cars is more than a passing fad. The fact that the dining car offers its guests rapid service, cleanliness, comfort, and an opportunity to see the food prepared, justifies the rapid rate of increase in dining car patronage.

Jerry O’Mahony dining cars are recognized by every community as a distinct addition to their particular neighbourhood.
Owners of Jerry O’Mahony dining cars are prosperous business men. Proven figures show them to have an actual net income of $5,000 – $10,000 per year.

The success of the modern dining car is firmly established. Take advantage of this opportunity to attain financial independence.

** The modern dining car interior – monarch type, Bakelite ceiling and stainless steel back wall **

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OPPORTUNITY AWAITS YOU

Present day business conditions are more favourable for dining car owners than ever before. Be your own boss!

People have become “dining car conscious”. They are seeking modern, sanitary, streamlined food service, and are aware that a dining car is the best place to get it. Jerry O’Mahony dining cars are a rapidly growing institution.

The dining car field does more than assure you a comfortable income. It gives you an opportunity to establish your own business. Many owners of Jerry O’Mahony dining cars who started out with just this thought in mind are now successful business men.

Desirable locations are plentiful. Hundreds of miles of new highways and innumerable towns throughout the country await the establishment of these modern eating places.

Study the dining car field. Assure your independence; – earn a larger income than most salaried men ever receive! Place yourself among the more prosperous members of your community.

Statistics prove that the initial investment in the dining car business will be returned to you yearly.

** Victory Type. Size: Ten feet, eight inches by forty feet. * Equipped with sliding doors. Delivered via freight. *

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AMOUNT OF PROFITS

Twenty-five to thirty cents of every dollar received by the owners of Jerry O’Mahony dining cars is clear profit.

Periodic surveys among owners of dining cars prove the average well managed Jerry O’Mahony dining car yields a profit of 25% to 30% on gross sales.

A modern Jerry O’Mahony dining car, in an average location, will serve between 500 and 700 customers a day. Statistics reveal that each person eating in one of these diners spends on the average of twenty to twenty-five cents.

Assume your Jerry O’Mahony dining car serves 500 customers a day, and the sales average is twenty cents. Your daily receipts will be one hundred dollars. With this basis of figuring, conservative though it is, your weekly profit, after deducting the cost of food, help, and overhead, will approximate one hundred and seventy-five dollars.

Study these figures carefully, – see for yourself how YOU can earn $5,000 to $10,000 a year operating a modern Jerry O’Mahony dining car.

** Interior, Victory Type. Size: Ten feet eight inches by forty feet, equipped with ventilators. Freight delivery. **

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YOU CAN OWN A MODERN JERRY O’MAHONY DINING CAR

A small amount of capital will establish you as the owner of a prosperous dining car business.
Many competent people, ambitious to start businesses of their own, are handicapped by the lack of sufficient cash. The Jerry O’Mahony Purchase Plan is a straight-forward arrangement of deferred payments, so regulated that you, as a good operator, can easily make the payments out of your dining car’s profit without working any hardship upon yourself. You pay as you earn, and after a short time you become the sole owner of a highly profitable dining car business. The dining car pays for itself.

Of course, many people have sufficient capital to buy their dining cars outright; but if you haven’t, no matter what your capital may be, investigate the Jerry O’Mahony purchase plan. Let us review your particular problem.

** Interior, monarch type, Size 10’8” by 45’. Booths at end in addition to counter. Shipped by freight*

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HOW TO GET STARTED

For thirty years Jerry O’Mahony, Inc., has been helping people get started in the dining car business. Our engineers and experts, rich in their knowledge of dining car technique, are available to help you start and succeed in this rapidly growing field. They will advise you in the choice of your location, recommend the type and size dining car best suited to your needs and suggest methods of operation and finance.
We cordially invite you to visit our plant to see how the modern Jerry O’Mahony dining cars are constructed. Come in and talk with us. You will benefit by our vast store of facts pertaining to your success in the dining car business.

Arrange a visit at your convenience. A brief note to our Service Department will bring you further information.

Remember, you can earn from $5,000 to $10,000 a year operating a Jerry O’Mahony dining car. The time to start is NOW!

*** Interior, Monarch type, size fifteen feet by forty feet. Showing kitchen and two toilets ***

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OPENING MADE SIMPLE

Preparations for opening a modern Jerry O’Mahony dining car are simple. Four connections are all that are necessary. When the gas, water, electricity and sewer are connected, your dining car is ready for use.
Provisions for efficient ventilation assure the proper de-humidification and elimination of all odors from our dining cars, – a vital factor in all good eating places.

Every individual item of equipment selected for use in Jerry O’Mahony dining cars is chosen only after extensive research for durability and efficiency.

Built to stand many times the stress and strain of transportation and daily use, modern Jerry O’Mahony dining cars are ready to use shortly after delivery.

Consult our engineers. Their advice concerning the establishment of successful dining cars is important to your success as a dining car owner. Benefit by the years of experience that have mad the opening of a Jerry O’Mahony dining car a simple matter.

*** Monarch type with gothics and deck sash. Size, fifteen feet by forty feet***

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COUNTER AND BOOTHS

The counter and boots are modern in every detail. The counter provides seats for twenty-six customers. Seventy- four may be comfortably seated in booths. The efficient arrangement of the modern equipment in the back bar speeds service throughout the dining car.

THE WORLD’S LARGEST DINING CAR

The Fairview diner is the world’s largest dining car. Eighty feet in length and sixteen feet in width, it is equipped to servie one hundred persons at one time. This dining car is air conditioned throughout. Its streamlined beauty, unusual capacity and extraordinary ease of operating is a true endorsement of our slogan: “In Our Line We Lead the World.”

The DINING ROOM

This spacious dining room accommodates seventy-four persons. The furnishings are especially arranged to facilitate the service of parties of six, eight, ten and twelve people. An ideal arrangement for dining cars catering to business men or family groups.

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SIZES and TYPES

Jerry O’Mahony, Inc., builds dining cars to meet every individual requirement. Most popular among the many types of modern Jerry O’Mahony dining cars are the MONARCH and VICTORY. Modern in every particular, these dining cars are creating a sensation throughout the country.

Both types have porcelain-enameled exteriors, trimmed with stainless steel. Bakelite or stainless steel doors and extruded Aluminum window sashes with Alumilite screens provide a sparkling exterior that requires no painting or redecorating.

The streamlined beauty of the exterior of any Jerry O’Mahony dining car is greatly enhanced by rounded corners; a feature developed by our engineering department with a view toward added attractiveness and durability.

Both types of dining cars have ceramic tile floors and Bakelite ceilings. Side walls are of mosaic tile trimmed with lustrous Mexican mahogany.

Every detail of these dining cars clearly demonstrates the careful planning and craftsmanship for which Jerry O’Mahony, Inc., is famous.

*** Monarch type, size fifteen feet by forty feet. Enamel and stainless steel exterior. ***

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STYLED TO SAVE

Jerry O’Mahony dining cars embody more than just the practical equipment for food service. They have an appealing architecture and a distinctive design which is attractive and will remain so throughout the years. Our designers carefully avoid the dangerous extremes of fads, favouring always the lines and decorative mediums which are of lasting good taste.

Jerry O’Mahony dining cars are permanent assets. Our thirty years experience in the styling of dining cars has given Jerry O’Mahony dining cars the permanence of appeal that assures operators an enduring, profit-making investment. Renovating or redecorating is seldom if ever necessary; resulting in extremely low up-keel cost and a minimum of depreciation. Many operators of Jerry O’Mahony dining cars, after receiving their original investment many times over, have turned in their diners on larger, newer dining cars after as long as twenty-five years of service. Jerry O’Mahony dining cars are styled to save.

*** Interior, Monarch type. Size, fifteen feet wide by forty feet long. Equipped for booth service. ***

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There’s the Westbury diner in the foreground, I’d assume it’s the same diner as this one. Also identifiable is the Franklin Diner. Note the rounded corner monarchs and the squared corner, stained glass windowed monarchs side by side.

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IN OUR LINE WE LEAD THE WORLD

Jerry O’Mahony, Inc. Operates the largest, most up-to-the-minute dining car factory in the world.
Large though our plant is, all building operations are so co-ordinated that every detail in the construction of a Jerry O’Mahony dining car is carefully supervised by one of the founders of this firm.

Many of the men who build Jerry O’Mahony dining cars have “come up from the ranks” in our employ. After years of apprenticeship these men have become craftsmen unexcelled in their trade.

To build a dining car for you, that is to last for thirty years, and to incorporate, as we do, all of the modern improvements, we employ the ultimate in craftsmanship, and use the best materials obtainable. Modern machinery and up-to-date methods assure lasting construction.

Come, visit our plant. Watch our craftsmen at work, notice the materials, – the tools they use. See for yourself why we can say, “In Our Line We Lead the World”.

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DURABILITY

Jerry O’Mahony dining cars are built to last for thirty years! In the selection of materials, the first consideration is durability. Only the finest material is used in construction.
The steel structure and the fabrication of West Virginian oak is the result of years of research in the building of better dining cars.

The exterior, which is porcelain-enameled, trimmed with copper or stainless steel, perfectly insulates our dining cars against moisture and imparts the lustrous beauty for which jerry O’Mahony dining cars have become famous.

The interior of every Jerry O’Mahony dining car is designed both for beauty and practicality. Floors of ceramic tile and side walls and counter step of mosaic tile in color combinations that harmonize with the Bakelite ceiling and Mexican mahogany trim, make a beautiful, long lasting interior. Alumilite window sash, stainless steel equipment and backwall, and the built in Bakelite hood all combine to make Jerry O’Mahony dining cars the most attractive and easily maintained of eating places.

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COFFEE MAKER

Coffee is your most important item. With this in view we have designed an economical, automatic coffee maker that achieves the ultimate in the consistent brewing of good coffee. The self controlled features and our drip system assure the brewing of good coffee at all times, with a minimum of effort. This coffee maker is thermostatically controlled.

STEAM TABLE

Easily accessible, the stainless steel steam table or electric food container in each Jerry O’Mahony dining car is complete with insets, covers, roll cover and double-walled warmer. Thermostatic control permits the prolonged storing of cooked food without shrinkage or loss of flavour.

Storage cabinet and display case

Modern Jerry O’Mahony dining cars are equipped with a large, modernistic, stainless steel refrigerator. In addition to this, a new feature in our dining cars is the reach-in storage and display case. Centrally located behind the counter, its accessibility speeds service. Equipped with stainless baine-marie pans and an overhead glass display case, with sliding doors and slanting mirrors, this auxiliary refrigerator keeps your supplies fresh and increases the sale of your most profitable items.

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O’Mahony was founded in 1913, so celebrating 30 years would date this to c. 1943.


Some closeups from other pages
If you have any idea as to where any of these diners were located, or if any are still around, please comment.

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Barrel roofed “Victory” model. Older style stools, and a sliding door. I wonder what the actual date of manufacture of this particular diner was. Interesting that this barrel roofed style with the skylight vents on the roof, that is so associated with 1920s and early 1930s diner style is still offered in the early 1940s.

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Interior with washrooms.

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The terrace grill, a square cornered monarch model. Interesting that they’re advertising this older style monarch alongside the newer, streamlined one. I wonder how the demand for this type was at the point the brochure was published.

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dining room setup

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interior of the fairview

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Fairview diner, an extra long monarch model

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Westbury Diner, a monarch model with curved and an end door

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It seems that the monarch name is used exclusively now to describe O’Mahony’s like this one, but the way the copy is worded here, it seems more like monarch was O’Mahony’s general model name for any monitor roof diner they produced, while “victory” was the model name for their barrel roof models.

Additional West Shore Diner photos

More photos of the West Shore Diner of Lemoyne Pennsylvania from another trip.

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Inside the West Shore- Notice how the backbar has been bumped out into the kitchen area, with the front of the back counter being flush with the back wall of the actual diner. Narrow deuce booths on the right.

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The backbar setup, with drink machine and passthrough to kitchen. Old woodwork trim. Support our Troops.

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The entire length of the diner. Blue, creme and black tilework. Worn salmon formica.

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exterior, with air conditioning unit.

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It’s a very narrow diner.

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The West Shore Diner. They saved my life.

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Diner corner with air conditioner cut-out

Smyrna Diner – Smyrna, DE / Cleveland, OH

The Smyrna Diner is a 1965 Paramount diner, which replaced a smaller diner, from 1954. The original can be seen here. At some point, the futuristic exterior of the diner was covered in wood. Recently, the diner was replaced with a modern, on site diner. The old Paramount is now in the capable hands of Steve Harwin of Diversified Diners.

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Exterior

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Freestanding sign. I believe this showed up on eBay a few months back.

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Original sign, a bit cracked up.

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Interior of the diner. Compare it to the vintage photo below.

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Interior of the diner.

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The exterior of the diner as it originally appeared. Since then, the tilework and much of the stainless has been covered in dark wood, while the windows have been replaced, drastically changing the look of the diner.

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The interior of the diner as it originally appeared.

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Picture of Diner being moved

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The new diner.

Story of diner’s move in the Sun Times – September 24, 2008
http://oh-diners.com/
– Go to Diversified Diners, then Diners for Sale

From the Diversified Diners website:
“The. . . diner is a 1960’s Paramount Diner which operated in Smyrna, DE since it’s manufacture. It was a local landmark until the late summer of 2008 when it’s property lease expired and a new larger and more modern diner was built about a mile down the road. The Smyrna Diner tradition continues and now the original Paramount diner is ready for a restoration and a new lease on life. It measure 65 feet long by 19 foot wide (in two sections) not including the vestibule. It has seating for 83 patrons.”

Wolfe’s Diner – Dillsburg, PA

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The outside of the diner. It appears as it did when new; a real time warp.

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Bikers at the diner

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The wonderful original neon sign. It still works. Hand painted signs advertise the $1.25 breakfast specials, Daily Specials and Lunch & Dinner.

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The original neon sign over the entrance.

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Jerry O’Mahony, Inc.
Dining Car Builders
Elizabeth, NJ

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The incredibly clean and well preserved interior of the diner.

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Sugar and Seeburg 200 Wall-o-matic. The 200 wall-matic was only made from 1955 to 1956, from what I’ve been able to find.

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“P_ _ H”

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Breakfast Specials (granted, this picture was taken three years ago or so, so prices have probably gone up) They were all ridiculously inexpensive, and what we had was excellent, and served in large portions.
#1 Two Extra large any style eggs, homefries, toast and jelly – $1.25
#2 Two Hotcakes and two strips of bacon – $1.95
#3 Cereal with milk and fruit juice – $1.25
#4 “Big Mess” – Three eggs, Homefries, onions, peppers and ham all mixed together, with toast – $3.95
Sausage Gravy and Biscuit – $2.50
Double order – $4.25
With Two eggs- $4.95

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A row of stools, terrazzo and formica

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Back-lit back painted Restrooms sign, inset into the stainless work

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Ford pickup rusting out back in the parking lot of Wolfe’s

Abandoned Pizza World- Kenilworth, PA

Abandoned “modern” place in PA
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edit: The owner of the Rosedale Diner opened Pizza World after the diner’s closing. The diner was moved to the woods across the street from Pizza World, and was featured on the cover of Hall and Oates’ Album, Abandoned Luncheonette. It no longer exists.
Thanks Larry!

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American Dream Diner- Harrisburg, PA

I hit this one up on a Harrisburg area road trip a few years back. It was built in 1953 by DeRaffele, and was previouly named the By-pass Diner. It’s a truly beautiful old place, with broad turquoise striping and gleaming stainless. It’s still very original, as you can see from the pictures. As of a couple years ago, the food and service matched the quality of the architecture. If you’re ever in the Harrisburg area, this one’s a must see.
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The American Dream Diner is located at:
1933 Herr St
Harrisburg, PA 17103

Prairie City Diners

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Queen’s Diner, the first unit by new diner manufacturer, Prairie City Diners, opened its doors in early December, 2008. Full Story on the Red Deer Advocate

Prairie City Diners

From the Prairie City Diners Website:
Here’s the first one of an exciting new chain of diner restaurants opening in Alberta, Canada. Made by ”Prairie City Diners“, this is a Shaw International and Medallion Structures joint venture. Each restaurant will have a different name, and this first one will be called ”Queen’s Diner“, named after the business park in which it is located. According to owners Scott Shaw of Shaw International and Jim Landin, of Medallion Structures, plans for the first 10 diners are already underway! Interest in this new product is high, so the sky is the limit! Built from the ground up, the diner itself has been patterned after the 1940-1950 silk city diners with round corners and roof lines.
Not all within this new chain will be diners. Some are bar cars and some ice-cream shops, but they are all in the diner style! What is so great about this new diner is that it is easy to move, they are built solid and can be moved anywhere. This first one shown below was moved from Medallion’s Shop 50 miles from Red Deer, using nothing more than a bed truck and trailer. Scott and Jim wanted to build a good product, and the result is that the diners have turned out better than they could have imagined! If you’re in the market for a ”real Diner” restaurant that is easy to move and is also turn key, look no further! They can even be sent to other countries around the world!

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A red model.

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Interiors:

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some more pictures are found here: BarsandBooths.com, who provided furniture, laminates, banding and accessories for the new diner
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I love that these are not the over the top caricature that so many manufacturers have been building in recent years. In concept and size, theses seem much truer to golden age diners. The design is clean and modern, but follows closely the lines of the classics. A late ’30s O’Mahony or a ’40s- early ’50s silk city is bought to mind.
It’s interesting to note that these are not being manufactured out New Jersey or Massachusetts, but out of Alberta, Canada, a province with no history of “real” diners.

Triangle Diner- Winchester, VA

The Triangle Diner- a 1948 O’Mahony, where Patsy Cline once worked. We visited it, and took these pictures several years ago when it was Lynette’s Triangle Diner
As you can see from the postcards, it went through several neon signs and vestibules over the years, which changed the look of the diner considerably. Eventually it was covered with dark wood, though much of the stainless can still be seen. A great, working vertical diner neon sign and clock is still in the parking lot. The windows still read air conditioned. Inside, the diner is a time warp to sixty years ago.

The diner is currently for sale. The listing can be found here.

The diner and addition have 1290 square feet, the lot is 6875 square feet. The diner seats fifty people.
The current price for the diner and property is $459,000.

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The Triangle Diner is found at:
27 West Gerrard Street, Winchester, VA.

East Shore Diner- Harrisburg, PA

The East Shore Diner is a 1950s O’Mahony, a large L-shaped model. It is the West Shore’s cousin, and sits across the river in Harrisburg.
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You can find the East Shore at:
711 S Cameron St
Harrisburg, PA 17104.