I went to Tastee Diner every work day morning for about four years. Al, the day cook would begin cooking my breakfast as soon as I walked through the door. 2 eggs over, 2 pancakes and 2 slices of bacon, and an endless cup of pretty darn good coffee. It was a nice hearty breakfast with everything cooked to perfection EVERY time.

I also ate lunch there about once a week. Al cooks the best burger on the East Coast. My wife loves their perfectly grilled grilled-cheese sandwich along with fries and gravy. All these meals are the basics any good diner needs to do well. And Tastee does it better than this seasoned diner diner has ever experienced. They also have daily specials. I find these hit or miss -- but out of personal preference--not any real failure on the prep.

Diners are not for everyone. Don't expect haute cuisine along with five star service. And you probably won't find anyone named Egbert or Trumball or Buffy sitting at the counter to discuss Polo and Cashmere.

The friendly staff of grizzled vets won't kindly suffer fools or snobs who don't know how to order. Most have experience working the overnight shift, where they deftly handle the drunks who rush the place as soon as the bars close.

To paraphrase Nick the bartender from "It's a Wonderful Life":
"Hey look, mister. We serve good food in here for good people who want to eat fast, and we don't need any characters around to give the joint "atmosphere". Is that clear?"

I went to this diner with high expectations. I write this so you don't make the same mistake. I can't think of a single positive thing to say about my experience. The food, the coffee, the service were all below average. You could do better at virtually any other restaurant within a mile radius.