Here are some shots from Inky over at inkyknits.blogspot.com of the recently restored (by Steve Harwin of Diversified Diners) Blue Moon Diner, a 1941 Silk City Diner now located in Hickory Corners, Michigan, at the Gilmore Car Museum. It was originally located in Meridan, CT, and has been at the museum since 2004.
I finally made it to the Capital City Diner when it was open.
I have been craving scrapple for six months- a regional specialty they just don’t have it in Halifax. I was in luck at the Cap City and got it with my three pancakes and coffee. 
We visited the former Pushnik’s Diner/ D’Alexander’s during a period between 2003 and 2006 when it was operating as the Horn & Horn diner. It was built in 1960 by the Fodero diner company and replaced an early model Silk City which had previously been on the site. It re-opened on Monday as Marabelle’s Restaurant. The full news story can be read HERE
Their new website is marabelles.com
Waterfall Rooms.
gold and stainless
Lightbulb Sputnik
Excellent 1960 space age styling. Quilted stainless, bold thin, outwardly canted supports, flared roof edge, recessed spotlights.
The original Patterson Vehicle Company built Silk City diner.
I visited the Capital City diner on May 24th, 2009, shortly after it arrived from Avoca New York to the Trinidad neighborhood of NE Washington. Since then I’ve been eagerly awaiting its opening.
Since I am currently at school in Halifax and could not make it myself, my father visited the Capital City diner this morning for breakfast along with a couple of his friends, fellow diner enthusiasts. The new owners, Matt Ashburn and Patrick Carl, have done an incredible job with the place, as you can see from the photos.
From Michael G. Stewart:
The breakfast was pretty good-Tasty & well prepared. The service was a bit spotty, but I guess to be expected this early on. The physical diner is pretty original, no silly updates or “Happy Days” isms. Despite being in a transitional part of town, there was a really good mix of young urban hipsters, some w/ families, professionals, & neighborhood locals. Good vibe, felt safe, fun & comfortable. So far, so good!
From SallyAnn Rogers:
We had a grand time at the Capital City Diner. My waffle was brown and crisp and not a bit mushy. The place is a little cramped, more like hobbit size, but it was filled to the brim and was a very nice experience. You are going to love it.
Red painted trimwork and roof really make the diner pop.
Blue and black
Silk City Diner manufactured by the Patterson Vehicle company of Patterson, NJ. Note that the background of the tag matches the tilework of the diner. I’m not sure if this is original, but it is a very nice touch.
The diner is located at 1050 Bladensburg Rd. NE washington DC
Become a fan of the diner on facebook.
We saw this one in New Jersey, near Carney’s Point. It’s a Silk City. It’s hard to tell precisely what it is, I don’t recall there being any signage on it. A large porch has been added, as has a handicapped ramp, which in conjunction with the roof addition, obscures the majority of the diner. There’s an open/closed sign in the front door and tables on the porch, so I can only assume its still a restaurant of some sort.
A view from the side. It looks like the roof addition does not actually cover the roof or protect the diner, it’s just for the porch. The diner may have been painted that red color at one point.
A different day, in the pouring rain
The Paterson Vehicle Company produced Silk City Diners from 1927 until 1964. Here are examples of some of the styles of tags they used to identify their products.
All photos (c) Spencer Stewart, may not be reused without permission.
The Deepwater Diner was built in 1958 by Silk City- as of our last visit, it was in great shape, with solid tasty diner food. It’s attached to a 1950s-era truck stop.
We stopped here this morning for a second breakfast, a “short” stack of pancakes and a side of bacon for me, an order of eggs, bacon, homefries for my dad. My short stack turned out to be two excellent pancakes the size of platters, which even I couldn’t finish. The bacon was tasty, the coffee fresh, and the grillmanship exciting.
Outside view of the diner. Though an angled front facade has been added, the complete barrel roof is still visible. You can see where the original front sliding door once was.
Inside view of the diner. Lots of later changes, but the tile work on the counter, the ceiling and the vent hood are original.
It looks from this period photo, taken after the move, that a white painted flat ceiling was added, preserving the original wood barrel roofed ceiling underneath.
Original window at the front of the diner. The other window has been removed to make way for a larger front door.
The ceiling of the diner has this design painted where the seam trim of the ceiling (now missing) meet.
Dan’s Diner of Spencertown, NY- same design.
Vent hood
The owners of the diner say that this is the nation’s oldest Silk City, built in the very early 1930s. Can anyone confirm Silk City as the builder?
Manufacturer of the diner has been confirmed as a O’Mahony.
Compare to this interior photo of Dan’s Diner of Spencertown, NY. Same vent hood, same sliding door (though the Kutztown one’s is gone, it’s visible in the old photos, and the doublewide delete on the wall), and the same ornamentation on the ceiling
Airport Diner – 15110 Kutztown Rd. – Kutztown, PA.
The Airport diner is a 1960 Silk City, serial number 6027, with zig-zag stainless
Philco sign – Pauley’s Electric Shop
222 Dutch Lanes Bowling
Emmaus Bowling Center – 16 Lanes – AMF – Emmaus, PA
Plaza 2331. Dig that plaid.
Trivet Family Restaurant – Breinigsville, PA – 1970s DeRaffele
Trucking Sign- Emmaus, PA
5th Street Diner – Temple, PA. Kullman replacing a Silk City
Giant Penguin
Backside of the Prospect Diner- Columbia, PA, a 1955 Kullman, as seen from the highway
This was my first real diner trip in a while. I met up today with Mike Engle, author of Diners of New York; the man behind NYdiners.com, and roadside buff and frequent Zippy the Pinhead contributor Ed Engel at the American City Diner, and headed out from there.
The first stop of the day was the American City Diner of 5532 Connecticut Ave NW Washington, DC. It’s a late ’80s Kullman, one of the early retro-styled diners, and one of the ones that did it right. For some photos as it appeared when new, click here. Since then, it’s been added on to, with a large side addition, and a front porch which obscures everything to the left of the vestibule.
The Left side of the diner- 2009
The left side of the diner – 1989
The former Howard Theater. Great rusty marquis on this one.
The now abandoned Wonderbread / Hostess Factory
Ran into a little excitement along the way between these two stops, but all’s well that ends well.
Northeast Academy of Dance Neon sign. Look at the detail at the left hand corner of the sign.
We hit up the Capital City Diner, which was moved here on the 20th. Watch the video of it being moved. This Silk City, formerly of Avoca New York, has made its way to the Trinidad neighborhood of Northeast DC.
Photos at its original location and some backstory can be found at :A Real Historic Diner Coming to DC!
This next leg of the trip had some neat neon and signage
A&R Auto Parts
Syd’s Drive In / Liquor
Cross Roads
Tesst theater
Hyattsville Hardware / Franklin’s
Calvert House
Silver Spring’s old Canada Dry bottling plant
A quick stop at the Silver Spring Tastee was made.
Now
Then
More old photos can be found here.
Then a side trip to Forest Glen, parts of which have deteriorated greatly since my last visit.
Dinner at the Tastee Diner in Bethesda
Then
And the trip’s final stop at Bethesda’s former Little Tavern. A 1990 photo of it, when it was still a Little Tavern, can be found on the Diner Hotline.
Diner Hunter 