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Jersey Diners
New Jersey Monthly named Peter Genovese one of the twenty-five "New Jerseyans We Love."
There is nothing more "Jersey" than a diner. Adorning the highways and byways of fully half of the state's 566 municipalities, no one in New Jersey lives far from one. There are more diners here than in any other state, and on top of that, one of the two remaining diner manufacturers is located in the Garden State.
In a year of roadside research, Peter Genovese talked to owners, employees, and customers, and ate more bacon and egg sandwiches than he cares to remember. The result is a funny, revealing book about a beloved American institution. Whether you want to know where and how diners started, who invented eggs served in a skillet, why these twenty-four-hours-a-day eateries are so popular, or, most important, which one has the best French toast, Jersey Diners has the answers.
Packed with facts, trivia, and stories about the owners, employees, and clientele, the book is also complemented with over three hundred evocative, beautiful photos of the buildings, their distinctive dTcor, the food, and the people who love it from Sussex to Salem counties.
This newly revised edition includes a fully updated directory that details where you can find every diner throughout the state!
There is nothing more "Jersey" than a diner. Adorning the highways and byways of fully half of the state's 566 municipalities, no one in New Jersey lives far from one. There are more diners here than in any other state, and on top of that, one of the two remaining diner manufacturers is located in the Garden State.
In a year of roadside research, Peter Genovese talked to owners, employees, and customers, and ate more bacon and egg sandwiches than he cares to remember. The result is a funny, revealing book about a beloved American institution. Whether you want to know where and how diners started, who invented eggs served in a skillet, why these twenty-four-hours-a-day eateries are so popular, or, most important, which one has the best French toast, Jersey Diners has the answers.
Packed with facts, trivia, and stories about the owners, employees, and clientele, the book is also complemented with over three hundred evocative, beautiful photos of the buildings, their distinctive dTcor, the food, and the people who love it from Sussex to Salem counties.
This newly revised edition includes a fully updated directory that details where you can find every diner throughout the state!
- GenresNonfiction
242 pages, Paperback
First published November 1, 1996
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
September 16, 2025
Most of these diners in this book are no longer open any more.
I am very very sad about that. Diners are the best. Its like having a real home cooked meal away from home. Like a warm hug from your grandma on a plate.
Good memory book.
I am very very sad about that. Diners are the best. Its like having a real home cooked meal away from home. Like a warm hug from your grandma on a plate.
Good memory book.
May 16, 2013
Rather haphazardly assembled (and no index to find particular diners) but an interesting collection of tales from the early 1990s of Jersey diners from a Star-Ledger writer. Sadly, many of them are radically changed, abandoned or gone now.
May 13, 2016
I love everything about this book.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews