A greasy spoon is a term used to refer to a small, cheap restaurant typically specializing in fried foods. [1] [2] The term greasy spoon has been used in the United States since at least the 1920s [3] to describe diners and coffee shops, and is presently used throughout the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland to refer to British and Irish cafes. According to the Oxford English Dictionary , the term greasy spoon originated in the United States [4] and is now used in various English-speaking countries.
The earliest appearance of the term in print was in Macmillan's Magazine in 1906, referring to events of an earlier time: a restaurant in Paris was visited daily by Robert Louis Stevenson in 1874. "...the Cremerie in the Rue Delambre, - an eating-house much frequented by artists, and familiarly known as The Greasy Spoon..."
Nicknaming cheap fried food restaurants after an unwashed spoon dates back at least to 1848: "The Gabbione [in Rome]... has withal an appearance so murky and so very far removed from cleanliness, that the Germans have bestowed upon it the apellation of the 'Dirty Spoon'." [5]
Many typical American and Canadian greasy spoon diners focus on fried or grilled food, such as Salisbury steak, fish and chips, deep fried chicken, sausages, bacon, waffles, pancakes, Spam, fried or scrambled eggs, and omelettes. Sandwiches are also popular, including hamburgers, hot dogs, steak sandwiches, and deli meats. These are often accompanied by sides of baked beans, hash browns, toast, french fries, onion rings, or coleslaw. Soups and chili con carne are generally available. Regional fare is often served. Since the 1970s, many Greek immigrants have entered the business. Coffee, iced tea, and soft drinks are the typical beverages, as alcohol is usually not offered due to the prohibitive cost of a liquor license. Pie, savouries and ice cream are popular snacks and desserts. [6]
A typical American greasy spoon or diner may offer a full meal for a special price, sometimes called a blue-plate special. A British or Irish cafe will typically offer a "full cooked breakfast" all day.
A greasy spoon diner is often located alongside a main road to serve passing motorists, particularly a truck stop catering particularly to truck (lorry) drivers; this is known as a transport cafe in Britain.
Although there are now far fewer establishments due to the dominance of corporate fast food restaurant chains, the greasy spoon diner is still nostalgic thanks to "counter service, jukeboxes and hearty comfort cuisine". The greasy spoon is a common setting in movies and TV shows. [7]
Restaurateur and television personality Guy Fieri, on Food Network's Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives , pays visits to such diners across the United States. [8]
Comic strips and humorous magazines have often lampooned the greasy spoon diner. The Better Half had Bert's Beanery, and Dagwood Bumstead continues to eat at Lou's Diner in Blondie. The kitchen and mess hall in Beetle Bailey provide the military equivalent of a greasy spoon. In their art, staff members tend to be unkempt in some way -- hirsute, unshaven, tattooed, wearing a stain-covered apron, or smoking a cigarette while cooking or interacting with a customer. A gag cartoonist may emphasize filth by drawing vermin such as cockroaches, flies or rats; an example from MAD Magazine #55 (June 1960) is "In a Greasy Spoon Diner" by Don Martin.
A hamburger, or simply burger, is a food consisting of fillings—usually a patty of ground meat, typically beef—placed inside a sliced bun or bread roll. Hamburgers are often served with cheese, lettuce, tomato, onion, pickles, bacon, or chilis; condiments such as ketchup, mustard, mayonnaise, relish, or a "special sauce", often a variation of Thousand Island dressing; and are frequently placed on sesame seed buns. A hamburger patty topped with cheese is called a cheeseburger.
A sandwich is a food typically consisting of vegetables, sliced cheese or meat, placed on or between slices of bread, or more generally any dish wherein bread serves as a container or wrapper for another food type. The sandwich began as a portable, convenient finger food in the Western world, though over time it has become prevalent worldwide.
A diner is a small, inexpensive restaurant found across the United States and Canada, as well as parts of Western Europe. Diners offer a wide range of foods, mostly American cuisine, a casual atmosphere, and, characteristically, a combination of booths served by a waitstaff and a long sit-down counter with direct service, in the smallest simply by a cook. Many diners have extended hours, and some along highways and areas with significant shift work stay open for 24 hours.
Cha chaan teng, often called a Hong Kong-style cafe or diner in English, is a type of restaurant that originated in Hong Kong. Cha chaan teng are commonly found in Hong Kong, Macau, and parts of Guangdong. Due to the waves of mass migrations from Hong Kong in the 1980s, they are now established in major Chinese communities in Western countries such as Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Likened to a greasy spoon cafe or an American diner, cha chaan tengs are known for eclectic and affordable menus, which include dishes from Hong Kong cuisine and Hong Kong-style Western cuisine. They draw comparisons to Western cafés due to their casual settings, as well as menus revolving around coffee and tea.
A blue-plate special is a discount-priced meal that usually changes daily: a term used in the United States and Canada by restaurants, especially diners and cafes.
The Montreal hot dog, also known as a steamie, is one of several variations of hot dogs served as a fast food staple at restaurants and diners in Montreal and other parts of Quebec.
A lunch counter or luncheonette is a small restaurant, similar to a diner, where the patron sits on a stool on one side of the counter and the server serves food from the opposite side of the counter, where the kitchen or food preparation area is located. As the name suggests, they were primarily used for the lunch meal. Lunch counters were once commonly located inside variety stores, pharmacies, and department stores in the United States throughout the 20th century. The intent of the lunch counter in a store was to profit from serving hungry shoppers, and to attract people to the store so that they might buy merchandise.
Diner lingo is a kind of American verbal slang used by cooks and chefs in diners and diner-style restaurants, and by the wait staff to communicate their orders to the cooks. Usage of terms with similar meaning, propagated by oral culture within each establishment, may vary by region or even among restaurants in the same locale.
A patty or burger is a flattened, usually round, serving of ground meat and/or legumes, grains, vegetables, or meat alternatives. Patties are found in multiple cuisines throughout the world.
Hamburg steak is a patty of ground beef. Made popular worldwide by migrating Germans, it became a mainstream dish around the start of the 19th century. It is related to Salisbury steaks, which also use ground beef. It is considered the origin of the ubiquitous hamburger, when, in the early 20th century, vendors began selling the Hamburg steak as a sandwich between bread.
Restaurants fall into several industry classifications, based upon menu style, preparation methods and pricing, as well as the means by which the food is served to the customer. This article mainly describes the situation in the US, while categorisation differs widely around the world.
A steak is a thick cut of meat generally sliced across the muscle fibers, sometimes including a bone. It is normally grilled or fried. Steak can be diced, cooked in sauce, such as in steak and kidney pie, or minced and formed into patties, such as hamburgers.
A combination meal, often referred as a combo-meal, is a type of meal that typically includes food items and a beverage. They are a common menu item at fast food restaurants, and other restaurants also purvey them. Combination meals may be priced lower compared to ordering items separately, but this is not always the case. A combination meal is also a meal in which the consumer orders items à la carte to create their own meal combination.
In Britain, a cafe, also known colloquially as a caff or greasy spoon, is a small, cheap eatery typically specialising in fried foods or home-cooked meals.
Fuller's Coffee Shop is a diner serving standard American cuisine in Portland, Oregon's Pearl District, in the United States. Established in 1947, the restaurant has operated from its location in downtown Portland since 1960. It serves breakfast all day, and the menu features a cheeseburger with a recipe that has not changed since the diner's establishment. Described as a greasy spoon, Fuller's has received a generally positive reception, and appeared in an episode of the television series Grimm in 2017. Founded by Jack Fuller, the diner was later owned by his son John then by Urban Restaurant Group.
Breakfast, the first meal of the day eaten after waking from the night's sleep, varies in composition and tradition across the world.
The Nite Hawk Cafe and Lounge is a restaurant in Portland, Oregon.