Route 40 Classic Diner — Restaurant in Redstone Township

Second time trying this place and both times in a year or so apart we had an awful experience. The first time we sat down and waited 15 mins for the server to take a drink order and that's after my husband got upset. I recall getting chicken fried steak for breakfast and it was a pressed meat patty like a school lunch. Ok, maybe the other stuff is good? So, we decided to try it again.

The second time we sat for a little over 20 mins for a server to even come take our drink order and that was only after we complained to another server. Both times the server would take drink orders of people that came in after us, look right at us, and still pass right by us not saying a word.

There's only about 15 tables in there and both the servers and the cooks don't seem to know what they are doing. We watched at least 4-5 tables in our area get there food randomly. Not once did a full order remotely come out together. We saw patrons sporadically get 2 of the 4 meals (some of them missing part of their orders) and finish eating before the 3rd and 4th person even got their meals. One table in particular, the father never even got his meal 35 mins after the rest of the family got theirs. How hard is it to cook pancakes and bacon?

We watched this fiasco for an hour and 15 mins to find out our order hadn't even been started!! We ended up paying for our drinks and left.

On the way out I spoke to another patron who sat down shortly after us and she said they told her they just put in their order...funny how they arrived after us but their order went in before ours. She mentioned about people that came in after them and the server was taking their orders before hers. So, I know it wasn't just us with issues. It was her first time there and she said they won't be coming back.

This place is so unorganized and seriously lacks decent service. Busy or not, no one should sit for 20 mins making eye contact with the server multiple times and them never say "I'm sorry, I'll be with you in a minute". Secondly, the kitchen needs to get a grip! Serving half a table while the other half waits another 30+ minutes to get their food is rediculous. We will NEVER try this...

Very good for what it advertises. It won't blow you away, but it's not designed to. It's a simple diner serving solid portions of comfort foods. Pancakes were extremely thick, just the way I like them; the waffle wasn't too bad either. The Route 40 Classic Deep Dish was a little salty and the biscuits were a little different than what I'm used to, but it was still quite enjoyable.

Service was pleasant (I think her name was Kimberly?) and she helped us with ordering to get the most bang for our buck. I also really enjoyed the decor and atmosphere; it made me feel like I was in a different era. Overall, still five stars despite my minor complaints. I would definitely go back if I'm in the area!

Update:

Visited again. Seems like they got a fresh new menu since the last time I was here. I got a pancake and waffle combo which is something I haven't seen before. However, it's great for people who want a bit of both and/or can't decide. I also had some of the garlic parm boneless wings, which were a tiny bit too salty, but otherwise had good flavor. They don't skimp on the garlic like most places seem to.

The biscuits and gravy were alright but I wasn't a huge fan of the gravy. It wasn't bad by any means, just personal preference on the flavors used. Service was great and our waitress suckered me into getting deep fried cheesecake. My only complaint about it was that I devoured it and it didn't last long enough. 😂

Definitely wanna stop by a third time and try some more of their...

I decided to surprise my fiancée with a stop here on the way home from an outing, as we've both been wanting to try a classic diner like this.

The decor was spot on, and it's worth visiting this place just to see it. I was born well after these kind of diners disappeared, so I can't speak to authenticity, but it felt like they put a lot of effort into creating the experience.

For those with COVID concerns, all of the booths were separated by clear partitions from the seatback-up.

Unfortunately, our experience with the food was not great. Although my milkshake was fantastic (complete with 'second shake' in the metal mixer cup), I felt like the cinnamon swirl french toast was bland, as was the syrup provided with it. The cheesestick appetizers were a bit better, but nothing super exciting.

My fiancee said the mashed potatoes were mediocre, and both they and the turkey were covered in a gravy that was so bad she couldn't eat any of her dinner. We stopped at a drive through on the way back to get her some food.

Others have said positive things about the food so I'm wondering if our experience might have been better if we had ordered burgers, fries, and other traditional diner food.

Still, I feel like it was worth stopping in just to see it, and would definitely recommend it for a...