Chow Down Diner
I drive down Hempstead Turnpike frequently. I watched the Bethpage Townhouse Diner morph into the Chow Down Diner. And after reading what turned out to be a spot-on review in Newsday I felt we had to try this place.
The decor is very 1960's "space age modern", retro but not kitschy. Bright and cheery. As Newsday pointed out, sort of a modern take on "The Jetsons". Or maybe something from the NY World's Fair circa 1964. but also comfortable and modern.
The menu. . .well, there are a lot of categories on the menu, but only a few items in each category. Three or four varieties of burger. Four or five types of sandwich. A lot of choices, yet limited.
As soon as I saw lobster mac and cheese and truffle mac and cheese on the menu, I knew we were not in an ordinary diner.
We started our meal with Caesar salad. A nice portion of romaine lettuce, lightly dressed, with a sprinkling of croutons and shaved Parmesan.
Entrees -- Drew ordered a Coney Island burger, a hamburger topped with pastrami and melted cheese, served on brioche and accompanied by fries. I ordered the meatloaf -- an individual loaf with a sweet chili glaze, served on top of a mound of mashed potatoes, with brown gravy and mushrooms.
We didn't order dessert, but the cocktail cupcakes looked intriguing.
Service -- the waitstaff was pleasant and efficient. The kinks were all kitchen-related -- the wait for our entrees was far too long, and they had to correct some mistakes with Drew's order.
We went on a Friday night. The place was busy, we had a 15 minute wait for a table, but for some reason they didn't want to open the back room.
And be forewarned -- this is the only diner on Long Island that closes at 10:00 PM.
The food was tasty if a bit different. And a bit pricey for "diner food". But overall we had a good experience, and we will probably go back eventually.
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- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
The decor is very 1960's "space age modern", retro but not kitschy. Bright and cheery. As Newsday pointed out, sort of a modern take on "The Jetsons". Or maybe something from the NY World's Fair circa 1964. but also comfortable and modern.
The menu. . .well, there are a lot of categories on the menu, but only a few items in each category. Three or four varieties of burger. Four or five types of sandwich. A lot of choices, yet limited.
As soon as I saw lobster mac and cheese and truffle mac and cheese on the menu, I knew we were not in an ordinary diner.
We started our meal with Caesar salad. A nice portion of romaine lettuce, lightly dressed, with a sprinkling of croutons and shaved Parmesan.
Entrees -- Drew ordered a Coney Island burger, a hamburger topped with pastrami and melted cheese, served on brioche and accompanied by fries. I ordered the meatloaf -- an individual loaf with a sweet chili glaze, served on top of a mound of mashed potatoes, with brown gravy and mushrooms.
We didn't order dessert, but the cocktail cupcakes looked intriguing.
Service -- the waitstaff was pleasant and efficient. The kinks were all kitchen-related -- the wait for our entrees was far too long, and they had to correct some mistakes with Drew's order.
We went on a Friday night. The place was busy, we had a 15 minute wait for a table, but for some reason they didn't want to open the back room.
And be forewarned -- this is the only diner on Long Island that closes at 10:00 PM.
The food was tasty if a bit different. And a bit pricey for "diner food". But overall we had a good experience, and we will probably go back eventually.
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}
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
Location:Bethpage, NY
They were still renovating when I drove past last month.
ReplyDeleteThere's another diner on Sunrise in Copiage/Lindenhurst that closes at 10. Last time my family was up, it took us by surprise that they were closing the place down around us! (If we'd known they were closing, we would have traveled further up the road...)