Watch 'Are diners dead?' episode of Four Bites Show

Findings: 24-hour places are dead, but despite everything, the diner yet persists

Three guys who love diners hashed over why we love them, how it hurts to see them go, and how deeply we appreciate that diners upholding those standards yet exist in Buffalo, N.Y., despite everything.

Findings: In Buffalo, 24-hour diners are almost dead. The restaurant at Jim’s Truck Plaza on Walden or the odd Denny’s, that’s it. 

Because of shifts in employment hours, having to pay employees a rising minimum wage, and overall contraction of nightlife post-covid, the post-midnight food scene is sparse. 

Still, the diner yet persists. My Exhibit A: Sophia’s, where a diner guy from a diner family decided to bet on the long-term viability of the classic eggs-potatoes-souvlaki Greek-American diner bible.

Kevin Thurston and Roy Bakos, restaurant veterans and partners in the late Cafe Godot, joined the kvetching choir. Thurston exhibits his cooking skills at Tipico Coffee on Elmwood, including vegan dishes worth seeking out. Bakos is not working in a restaurant for the first time in four decades, as he goes full-time into teaching at University at Buffalo and Buffalo State University.

Tom’s Home of the Souvlaki still has the lights on, as does Nick’s Place, Nick’s Place Express, Hillview Restaurant, Kosta’s and Zoe. The Olympic still sells souvlaki across Sheridan Drive from the Royal. 

The diner yet persists.

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