Diner — Restaurant in New York

Honestly, I used to love this place but now I wish that this building would burn down in a horrible, long lasting grease fire along with it's entire staff. Let me explain: I used to frequent this spot back when the burger was $17 and Williamsburg was not filled with finance bros and yuppies who have pushed out any semblance of local community and replaced it with the sterile husk of a neighborhood that now exists. I ate here the other night and was treated so rudely by their staff. The host rolled his eyes at me when I asked if I could have a table for 2 with no reservation on a monday night when more than half the tables were vacant. The waitress who followed was not any better. She did the whole song and dance of writing down the whole menu and explaining what a $17 dollar soup was. I knew I wanted the burger, so I stopped her halfway and informed her of that. She sighed, gave me hateful stare and said ok and asked if i would like a slice of tomato for an extra dollar. I obliged. She rolled her eyes and left our table. I ordered the now $25 burger (which isn't even grass fed beef) medium rare and it came out still mooing with barely a sear. I finished my meal as fast as I could and it was mediocre at best. I promise you I make a better one at home. All I wanted was to leave this wretched, pretentious, excuse for a fancy restaurant and go home. Experiences like this make me want to leave NYC forever as I feel that it has lost all its character and coolness and has been replaced with pretentious drones who only care about status and money. Go to...

One of the most memorable dinners I have had in Williamsburg, thanks to both the food and the incredible service. Our waiter Benjamin set the tone right away. He came to the table, unrolled white paper, and literally wrote out the menu for us, walking us through every dish with so much detail and enthusiasm. It felt personal, special, and set the stage for the meal to come.

We started with the crudo, which was absolutely out of this world. Fresh, bright, and paired with the most insane garlicky dip in a little ramekin that we shamelessly saved to dunk bread into after. Next up, the Caesar salad. They called it “robust” and they were not lying. As a Caesar purist, I can confidently say the anchovy dressing was perfection.

The sweet corn risotto was probably my least favorite. I expected it to be a little “cornier” (ha) and thicker in texture, but everything else more than made up for it. The brick chicken was a showstopper. However they flatten and crisp that bird, they brick the hell out of it and lock in every bit of flavor into the skin. Absolutely unreal.

And dessert. I did not know ice cream could be this sinful. The Wendy’s Ice Cream Sundae was unreal. Chocolate, cherries, bordeaux. It was decadent, nostalgic, and had me literally drooling at the table.

If you want a dining experience that is both elevated and full of character, Diner is it. Benjamin made the night, the food blew us away, and I am already...

We went on a whim to Diner during the recent heatwave. What a great find!

It's lovely that the menu changes daily and while the waitress jots some notes on the paper tablecloth to remind you of the items, it's hard to remember the details of all ~12 items, we had to ask her back to the table twice. In the end, it probably doesn't matter what you order, everything was delectable.

Won't go into the details of the food items, since they change, but will call out the bruschetta-inspired appetizer: This was hands down one of the best either Jessica or I have eaten. Perfectly created slice of bread with beautiful herbal dressing, egg, and tender beef tongue.

We got there fairly early and notices several families dining, so cool that it's family friendly. As long as your kid is not picky (ours is not). There is always a burger on the menu.

Two negative dings as to why I can't give five stars. First, the rabbit was over-cooked and chewy. And second, if you walked in you would see a perfect, hipster Diner decor, the name is Diner, the food is far from Diner fare, closer to New American Bistro. For that the decor is definitely sub-par. Also the service started out strong, but as the evening went on and more tables filled, the servers seemed to struggle to keep up.

All in all, the food was really good, and prices...