West Taghkanic Diner

Stopped here after driving up from the city. It was late, 9:30pm, and it was one of the few places still open. Only one other person was there and the waitress was very nice. Food is very reasonably priced and came quickly, and was hot out of the kitchen. Ordered the fried chicken sandwich deluxe and my parents had BLT’s. Yes, it’s in a very rural spot, it’s small and feels like a time-​warp to the 50s, but the food was good. Would stop there again.

I very rarely have the time to write a review but after seeing some people give it good reviews I had to because I feel like I was duped! My husband used to go here as a child, so we stopped for old times sake. Let’s just say some things should stay in the past! I live on Long Island so I have had more than enough diner food to compare. We arrived at around 4:30 when we walked in there was only 2 tables occupied, 1 with 4 people (they were almost done) and 1 with 3 (they walked in just before us). When we walked in we were greeted with someone shouting across the diner «just sit anywhere that’s clean». What she should have said is sit somewhere with nothing on the table because the whole diner is covered in grim. Everything just has a dirty look and feel. So we sat down and waited, and waited and about 10 minutes later the very frantic hostess/​waitress came over and gave us our menus. After another 10+ minute wait and yes I admit a dirty look from me she rushes over and takes our complete order, we hadn’t even ordered drinks yet! We ordered a cup of chili to start for my husband, 2 cheeseburger meals, a stack of 3 pancakes for my son (9), and a chicken nugget kids meal for my daughter (2). Finally she brings us our drinks and mentions that since she forgot about us she didn’t charge us for 2 of our drinks. I thought how nice! WRONG! I guess since we didn’t get charged that also meant we didn’t get refills. After about 15 minutes our dinner arrives, problem was the cup of chili never showed up, I should mention this is one of the main reasons we stopped there because my husband remember loving it as a child. Ok so the dinner, well our burgers were about the size of a Wendy’s burger, they were over cooked and the roll was soggy, definitely not the impressive diner burger I’m used to. The fries were good, but we didn’t get many, and we had a little cup of what I assume was potato salad but wouldn’t dare eat because it looked old, sweaty and droopy. My son had 2 of his 3 pancakes burned (really who screws up pancakes) and a cup of what I assume was margarine but was melted to a cup of oil. I would have like to ask for butter but she never showed up during our meal to ask if we needed anything. I also had to get up and take ketchup from another table as we didn’t even have a bottle on ours. The one meal that was decent was my daughters nuggets! They were crispy, and really good 100% white meat. She also had the biggest helping of fries and she was supposed to get just ½ a portion, go figure. After another long wait, and me stacking all the plates to get her attention the waitress shows up with our check, which you guessed it had the chili listed! At this point she was talking to a group of what I assume was either a co worker or friends, they didn’t order and showed up while we were waiting for our check. So I got up and tracked her down to explain I wanted the chili taken off the bill. Her reply was «oh I’m a mess today» and did take it off the bill. Never apologizing. After our meal we did go to the bathroom, I shudder as I type this, I have stopped at truck stops that were cleaner. Dirt and grim and years of poor cleaning jobs show everywhere. I should also explain that at no point in time was it busy only 1 other couple showed up during our meal and there was never more then 3 tables full. Overall, it was a waste of a stop and calories. Sad to say we all wished we went to Wendy’s instead and I never eat fast food.

I was there for breakfast this past Saturday morning. We sat at a dirty table and the first thing that happened was the guy cleaning the table spilling (cold) coffee from a dirty cup into my lap. The chaos progressed as the waitress and her co-​waitress proceeded to bully the poor bus-​guy (who looked to be middle eastern, which I imagine brought on a whole new set of antics from them). They were loud, dropped some f-​bombs (with kids present), and basically made fun of everyone working there. The food was acceptable, mercifully. When I left, I left no tip, told her that it was the most miserable restaurant I’d ever eaten in, and was not apologized to for their behavior or for the coffee in my lap. It was disgusting.

Julie M. this place is so good? Surely you jest. This may have been a good place at one time but now it’s grubby. First, the beautiful Indian Head classic neon sign is mostly burnt out, in itself an indication of decline and lack of care. The diner is surrounded by growth and weeds, cigarette butts near the steps. The inside is no better. That old food smell combined with industrial cleanser odor. Chipped Formica, stained bathroom fixtures. Nothing has been replaced since opening day in the 50’s. Now that would be nostalgic had it been maintained, but sorry that’s not the case. The food? So-​so diner food, nothing worth a trip. And has been mentioned the staff is none too friendly. The day we were there the manager was beating up an obviously new waitress, rather than helping her out. This is a shame, as it’s right on Rt 82 on the way to the Rip Van Winkle bridge to Greene County. If you are on this road passing through Columbia County and find a better place to stop, please let me know!

i read about this place on a few websites and was excited to stop at an authentic american diner without all the pish-​posh of NYC. Well, I guess authentic is what we got! The waitress with bleach blonde hair and a frantic, angry disposition suggesting that perhaps some 15 years ago when she first started working here, she had dreams of getting out of Ancram.
While the menu featured an impressive variety of items including «crab stuffed shrimp», as I was gulping down a cup of sour new england clam chowder I learned in horror from a local who had stopped by for some soup that she had had the clam chowder «a few days ago» so there is no way that it was fresh.
We sat at the counter and observed with great surprise 2 – 3 waitresses frantic, sweaty, constantly running, without a hint of a smile on their faces, servicing maybe 4 – 5 tables. The atmosphere was so permeated with this anxiety, that it was impossible to enjoy the nesquick chocolate milkshake I had ordered in hopes of having it with my burgers and fries (all american diner meal!). After quietly waiting — lest we bother our stressed servers — for half an hour for our burgers we politely requested to have then to go and so began the frustrated conversation between the two waitresses attempting to figure out what table we were (only ppl sitting at the bar out of 5 tables occupied total).
Finally, when we got into our car and turned on some soothing radio noise to try and shed the sweaty anxiety clinging to us, the burgers that were being prepared over the course of half an hour somehow ended up too hot, the buns soggy, pickles not crispy.
all in all — mehhhhhh, and never again.

This place is so so good! We stopped by here on the way to Lake George, and am so happy we did. It looks like a diner you see in the movies, cute and cozy with friendly staff. I had the waffles and they came in second to the best waffles I’ve ever had. We also had a yummy omelette and my friend had some kind of meat that she thought was good. The food was fresh — the blueberries I had with the waffles were filled with flavor. Extremely cheap and fast service. I wish I lived closer so that I could go back; I guess I’ll have something to look forward to if I drive upstate again.

I have been going here for years and there have multiple different orders. It’s right off the The Tachonic Pkwy.
I have tried multiple dishes there but I would stick to the eggs and burger with fries.
I rated it this high because it’s pretty much the only place for breakfast and us convenient. The food overall is not that great but some if the waiters are friendly and since it’s not over crowded you get your food faster.

It’s an ok diner but nothing spectacular. I live just a few minutes away so I usually call in and order to go. I usually order the cheeseburger deluxe. It’s what you’d expect from a diner. My issue is that they can’t seem to cook it to order the way I want it. I always ask for it well done and I’m lucky if its medium. I don’t understand how it’s that hard to cook a well done burger. I’m just a regular house wife and even I can handle that. I’d say they get it cooked correctly less than 25% of the time. It’s especially annoying when you’re craving a burger at 9 months pregnant and NEED it cooked well done and the middle is still raw.

Aweful. The food is obviously frozen and either fried or grease paned. The fish sandwich is a fish stick on a hotdog roll. Yes a fish stick on a hot dog roll… insanity pretending to be a diner.

I used to come here as a child on road trips with my mom. I had such nostlgia and wanted to go back there. The food was good, but the waitress didn’t write our order down and kind of mixed up what we got. I ordered an egg cream, and got a vanilla egg cream, thinking that chocolate was the default, I didn’t realize I had to specify. Secondly, my boyfriend ordered a turkey burger and got a veggie burger. Not a terrible mixup, its just that wasn’t what he ordered.
It was a nice place, with an old diner feel, and all in all a cute place to stop on a road trip.

What a nightmare. I drive up to vt yesterday with my family. We needed to find a bathroom off the taconic, so we stopped in. I don’t believe in using a bathroom without buying something. So i asked what they had for dessert. They mentioned a bunch of pies.
I told them that my son who was with us had nut allergies and if they knew what was in the pies. They told me the pies were homemade so they knew. The waitress went into the kitchen to confirm no nuts with the chef. She came back in a minute. All good. So i ordered the slices and paid.
At that point my wife came out of the bathroom and asked if the pies were safe. I said yes they were homemade and the chef had confirmed. I then went to the bathroom myself. I came out and went to the car…
My wife told me what happened while i was gone. She double checked with the kitchen, noting how serious the allergy was and asked about things like almond extracts. Then they told her the truth. They didn’t make the pies there, just heated them up! They did show her the box, which revealed the pies were safe.
But it was clear that they had lied to us and were not even sure originally if the pies had been safe. They had gone thru this ruse, potentially risking my son’s life just to sell a few slices of pie!

The West Taghkanic Diner is merely a tourist trap, kept in business by the fact that is conveniently located just off the Taconic Parkway. Totally forgettable, overpriced food with slow, unfriendly service. As another reviewer noted, the curtains are filthy (I mean beyond disgusting filthy), which was almost enough to make us turn back, but we were in a rush to get to our destination and didn’t want to search for another restaurant in the area. Next time we’ll just keep driving.

This is not like your typical NYC diner. Service is slow (30 minute wait for a burger and scrambled eggs with pancakes), portions are small, and prices are a bit steep for Columbia County. The pancakes were flat like crepes. The standard burgers are 10 ounces, per the menu, but the blue cheese burger (special) was closer to 4 – 6 ounces. You have to ask for water otherwise you don’t get it. To top it off, the curtains were last washed in the 70s. The second star is for the nice neon and original stainless steel exterior.

0 stars. This place made me sick to my stomach. AVOID AT ALL COSTS!

Yesterday we ate breakfast there with five others and we really enjoyed it. I had sweet potato pancakes, which were delicious and a real treat. Everyone else also liked their food. Our server was *terrific*; funny and feisty. All of the other people working there were also very friendly. The diner is beautiful, inside and out.

I remember stopping at this diner with a friend when we drove up to Western Mass to look at grad school there. Well that was quite a while ago so I thought it may be prudent to see if it was as good as I remembered diners to be in CoCo.
Well it looked exactly as I remembered. As I have previously mentioned, I love a classic chromed out diner with the neon sign beckoning from the side of the road, in this case the Taconic Parkway. In that respect the WTD did not disappoint. In fact it did not disappoint at all. I ordered an easy lunch-​a veggie burger and unsweetened iced tea. I got what I ordered with a side of super nice waitress. I am sure it was a pre-​made veggie burger but it was fine. My husband ordered Fish on a Bun and it was like a giant French Fry on a hot dog bun. But it was made from a piece of fish not minced up bits ‘n pieces. We laughed about that but he enjoyed it (see pictures). I have never seen anything like that. It was a solid if not remarkable meal.
I don’t know that I would make it a point to go back but if passing by and feeling a bit nostalgic perhaps. :))) It would also be great to see a little restoration work going on as this diner is a piece of Americana for sure.

This is a review by a vegetarian
I love it when my food can glow in the dark. This is my new test for sweet potato fries: I am going to turn out the light and see if I can get them in my mouth without greasing my cheeks.
The black and white milkshake was just right for temperature, consistency, and taste. Plus it was sub $ 4 which is rare even in TaconicLand NY.
Omnivore younglings enjoyed their meals as well.

This is a classic 1953 aluminum diner which has been maintained in perfect condition, and serves outstanding diner food in a warm and friendly atmosphere which welcomes one and all.
A great deal of time and effort have gone in to making this diner what it is today, an ideal stop for the kind of meal most everyone wants.
There are too many favorites to list, but if you go for lunch, the Patty Melt is unequaled, anywhere. You will never forget it – and like a lot of people — you will very likely keep coming back for it whenever you can.
Oh, and the staff, to a person, are terrific and fast.

A meal the the West Taghkanic is a well deserved reward after the white knuckled deer dodging drive up the parkway! It’s a great little place with very good food.
A traditional place for my family to reunite along with our closest friends. Nothing pretentious about the décor or menu.
Keep your cardiologist on speed dial. I recommend the tower of onion rings with integrated dipping sauce tray. Burgers are good, wings as well. Many dishes have a modern twist.
For the full history go to:

Opened in 1953 little has changed at the West Taghkanic Diner. The massive Indian head neon sign watches over the place is still in place and in pristine condition. It’s one of the best preserved examples of a 50’s trailer type diner that I’ve seen.
I eaten here several times on trips up the Taconic Parkway. My girlfriend and I entered and sat ourselves down at a booth with blue vinyl benches and a patterned Formica tabletop.
The fare here is better than any other diner food I’ve come across. I think it’s because they actually seem to care about what they do. I started out ordering an Egg Cream. When the kindly waitress set it in front of me she said, «Your gonna love this. I make them the best». She was correct in her assumption.
I ordered the Patty Melt (beef burger on rye with cheese and fried onions) with fries on the side. I had choices other than beef that included ostrich and bison. My girlfriend ordered the cheese burger deluxe with sweet potato fries.
My Patty Melt was fantastic. It was like traveling back in time to an era when men were men and they didn’t worry about their cardiac health. The rye was slightly grilled and the patty was juicy and full of flavor. My girlfriends burger was just as good and the sweet potato fries delicious.
When I tasted the coleslaw that came on the side I was very surprised at how good it was. I asked the waitress if they made it themselves. She looked at me, cocked her head and said, «Of course».