The Diner

In my opinion nasty food and an owner with an attitude problem. After explaining our distaste for the greasy underdone hash we were given we were told «that’s how you make it». Unfortunately we have had much better and there are better options for breakfast than The Diner in Middlebury.

Great for a quick breakfast and very friendly service.

Better-​than-​average diner food, with all of the usual things on the menu plus some unusual surprises. Nicely revamped by the new owners.
NB, they make an awesome home-​made hot sauce that you can now buy to go (more of a finely minced chile pepper paste than a sauce).

Went here this AM after reading all the positive reviews — unfortunately it wasn’t so good. We ordered corn beef hash and two eggs, waited a long time to get our order taken and then waited even longer for our mediocre food to arrive. Our waitress was very nice but the food and long wait times were a bummer. Skip this place.

What a great breakfast! I am a college student here and Middlebury, and the diner was the perfect escape for a lovely breakfast. I recommend the pancakes, which were the fluffiest I have had in awhile. Also great prices. Highly recommend!

Formerly known as Steve’s Park Diner, this little restaurant on Merchant’s Row right next door to the Town Hall Theatre has been an institution in Middlebury since the 1930s. Now under new ownership (of Karl, previously of 51 Main at the Bridge) and with a whole new menu, the restaurant has improved the quality of its offerings considerably and still manages to retained its homespun character. My eggs, home fries, bacon, and locally made wheat toast were done to perfection, and and everything was served piping hot by an adroit member of the wait staff (whom I recognized from the Park Diner days) who also kept my cup of coffee filled. My lunch partner had a pulled pork sandwich (I think it was one of the daily specials) and a cup of soup, and we both enjoyed our meals. The Diner is friendly and cozy and still conveys a sense of good-​times-​gone-​by. I just love the feeling of sinking into a booth there for breakfast or lunch. Ahhhh.
I went back again in December 2014 with a different friend and we had a grilled cheese with bacon and the Diner’s dynamite Reuben sandwich. Both were excellent and the French fries were done to perfection. Not like some of those places that make you wonder: «Hey! When was the last time they changed the FF oil?» At The Diner it’s obvious that the fryolator oil is always fresh.
I hope others will stop by The Diner soon, have a meal, and post their experiences on Unilocal!to balance the comments of «Craig B.» who blasted The Diner in his snarky review and — bear this in mind — is the same «Craig B.» who gives McDonald’s five stars (!). I suppose he frequented the diner in its previous iteration, and doesn’t like how menu prices had to jump about 15 – 20 percent to compensate for the higher quality of fresh, local, and homemade foods that Karl, Caetlin, and their staff now serve with pride.

A clean, well-​lit place. Recently refreshed under new ownership, this place has all the things you’d expect to find at a diner – all day breakfast, meatloaf, club sandwiches and fries, but it doesn’t stop there.
How does cream cheese, bacon and jalapeño jam stuffed French toast sound? Yum Yum Naan: pulled bbq Korean beef with house made Asian slaw.
As a vegetarian, I usually find that diners offer little more than peanut butter and jelly on wonder bread, but I just finished the gyros made with grilled tofu – a refreshing new option for this town. For the macho gastronome, there’s the Adirondack Stack challenge burger, 18oz of vt beef triple stacked with a grilled cheese, fixin’s & onion rings. If you finish the meal you are awarded a free «I beat the burger at the Diner» t-​shirt.
Service was kindly and attentive, in a relaxed way that made me feel at home. They have a password protected wifi, and will share the password with anyone who asks for it.
If there’s a downside, it would that these aren’t diner prices. Turkey Club: $ 10.75; two egg breakfast: $ 8.25.

Seriously? If I wanted to eat McDonald’s Hash Browns I would have gone to McDonald’s! The meal I ordered was billed as biscuits topped with sausage gravy, hash browns, cheddar cheese, and eggs any style. The biscuits were from the freezer and were burned on the griddle to heat them. The hash browns were stolen from Ronald McDonald. (I make my own hash browns frequently, it’s not that hard to do!) The sausage gravy was bland and lacking in sausage. The cheddar cheese was hiding underneath everything, and had also been burned on the griddle. The only redeeming factor in the whole meal was that the over easy eggs were cooked perfectly. (My dining companion was not so lucky, her over medium eggs were cooked less than my over easy’s.)
I don’t think that telling it like it was is snarky, nor do I have a problem with the prices. Finally, 4 people found my spoof review of McDonald’s to be ‘funny’, I guess RJ doesn’t know humor when it hits him in the face.
Best to avoid this place.

We love this sweet historic spot that’s been recently revamped and drastically improved! The new owners have transformed it to a place we once hit only in a breakfast emergency to a place we look forward to visiting for breakfast or lunch on weekends and weekdays. They have food that’s good enough to please the parents while at the same time managing to keep kids happy. The specials are always appealing and it’s a good place to go even if you’re trying to be a little more health-​conscious, which is not easy to say of all diners. And if you’re up for a calorie-​splurge, you won’t regret going for something more indulgent like biscuits with sausage gravy or French toast with nutella and whipped cream. As locals with just a few breakfast options, we’re grateful to have this gem of a place nearby.

I am a big fan of the new Belgian waffle, oh, and the burger and fries! I love that both the breakfast and lunch menus are served all day! Fast, friendly, delicious, reasonably priced. If you haven’t been in a while, you should check it out!

Delicious food! Cozy booths and super friendly waitresses. Definitely a great place to brunch!

Great service! We are glad that they are open… Food was very good. Love the owners and staff. My only wish is for a better Hollandaise sauce and crispier home fries but the over all experience was wonderful. Sounds like they have plans for expanding the menu and we are looking forward to that.

Great service and delicious chicken salad sandwich! I’ve been twice and have walked away wanting more!