Courtesy Diner — Restaurant in St. Louis

Have you been endlessly searching for that classic dining experience? Worried that you can't still go out and grab a quality meal at a reasonable price? Well... It's time you halt the hunt, because at Courtesy Diner you'll be sure to find top quality, service, cleanliness, and value.

HISTORY

Beginning it's journey in 1935, this particular group of restaurants were originally named Courtesy Sandwich Shop. Over the next 75 years, the chain dwindled (along with the diner trend) to a sole store on Kingshighway Boulevard in Saint Louis. In 1997, tradition was reborn when an established restaurant owner purchased the name from the estate. Kingshighway prospered, and two years later Courtesy expanded with a second location off Hampton Avenue. Although more modern, the ambiance still reflects old-time nostalgia with red vinyl, checkered tile, stainless steel skies, and classic juke box tunes. Courtesy opened the doors to its third location (Laclede Station) in November of 2013.

MUST TRY

Anyone who knows a Saint Louis native knows that they are privy to the classic Slinger. The Slinger is a specialty dish consisting of one hamburger patty, two eggs (cooked to order), all served with chili and hash browns. This combination of delicious, quality ingredients will be sure to provide your tastebuds with one of the most sensational experiences, and will definitely leave you wanting more! Courtesy Diner created three variations of the Slinger: "The Hoosier" (Slinger with white gravy instead of chili), "The Hangover" (chicken fried steak covered in white sausage gravy, two eggs, and hash browns), and "The Devil's Delight" (Slinger without the hamburger patty). So, no matter what your preference is, there is an option for the whole family!

Overall, I would definitely recommend this establishment to friends & family due to the quality of the products, as well as the fast and friendly service received when dining in or carrying out. Personally, I've never experienced a negative situation at any of the three locations throughout the Saint Louis area. This is due to the employees being attentive to the work they do, and putting much care into the position held.

TIP: This chain of establishments is CASH ONLY. There is an ATM located inside each building for your...

From the outside, this classic old-school diner looks like a hole-in-the-wall that would be run-down, dirty, and provide poor quality food and service. BUT IT IS THE OPPOSITE IN EVERY WAY!!!!! We were intrigued by the style and took a chance on lunch after a Target run and OMG it was the best!!!! We sat at the bar and was immediately waited on by the sweetest woman ever! I don't know her name, but she has long blonde hair and I adore her. We placed our drink orders and took a look behind the counter to notice that the kitchen area is SPOTLESS. I mean, no signs of mildew or mold or caked grease or spills or stains or anything that would summon the Health Department to rate lower than an A. Our drinks arrived within seconds, and we ordered food. The menu is very, very well-rounded. I had a hard time deciding! A lot of unique dishes mixed with classic diner plates. I chose the chicken fried steak sandwich with onion rings and my bf got the steak sandwich with fries. The order was up within 10 minutes, and the diner was really busy! Very impressed with the quality of the food! It looked amazing and was hot! My CFS sandwich was just like my grandma used to make in Mississippi! It was nostalgic and the onion rings were heavenly! Now, my bf's steak sandwich was not what I expected but I was low-key jealous of his order. It was an actual slab of steak between toast with LTO. He added hot sauce and I think his soul left his body when he ate it. I haven't seen this man in such food bliss! We tried so hard to finish our food, but it was all so much! We left satiated!

Payment: This diner is cash only, but they have an ATM in the corner that functions properly! Overall, we paid $30 for our lunch. Totally worth it! Will be back!

Parking: Parking is a little limited and tight, but I believe there is a good space to table ratio, so it doesn't become impossible to park and dine.

Sorry for no photos! I left my...

Still doesn't take credit, debit cards or Apple pay!!! When a business decides not to accept every method of payment that a customer has to offer, and then forces the customer to either use cash OR to pay money to withdraw funds from an ATM machine just to place their order, it makes me think that the business owner does not truly care about the entire customer service experience.

It makes me to believe that the business owner only cares about pushing their product to the customer, regardless if the customer enjoys the purchasing experience or not.

And the crazy part about this is that every single customer who caters to this restaurant, who does NOT have the ability to use their credit or debit cards there, when those customers leave out of this establishment, they have access to thousands of other businesses in the city who do and are willing to accept those credit and debit cards. So your forcing your patrons to go to your competition. Additionally, the business owner who fails to accept credit and debit cards from their customer, even that business owner, when he leaves his business and goes out to spend his money in other areas, he uses a credit or debit card and would also FEEL inconvenienced if the establishment he was spending his money at did not want to accept his American Express Visa or MasterCard.

So it makes no total sense, and this will definitely be the last time that I come to this establishment. You make good food, but you don't care about your customers, nor do you really care about increasing your cash flow.

Statistically speaking, businesses who accept credit and debit cards from their customers, generate more revenue than businesses who just depend on customers walking in having the exact amount of cash for the purchase. It leaves no room for...