As closed N.J. diners reopen and owners add new locations, confidence comes back on the menu
The Penn Queen, Cherry Hill, Shamong, and Voorhees diners are no more. But the Diamond, Star View, and Malaga diners are reopening with different names. Are Jersey diners here to stay?
The Malaga Diner in Franklin Township closed last November but will soon reopen with a new owner and a new name.
Geets Diner in Williamstown is no longer on the market and will continue operations; the Medport Diner in Medford, which faced demolition until a development deal fell through, will remain open for business.
Meanwhile, Hainesport’s Diamond Diner closed in March but will reopen in September as the fourth location of the locally owned Pandora Diner chain.
» READ MORE: Diamond Diner is South Jersey’s fifth diner to close within six months
And Amy’s Omelette House is coming soon to the former Star View Diner in Somerdale. This will be the fourth location for the South Jersey-based company.
» READ MORE: Another old-school South Jersey diner has closed. A newer breed of casual dining will open there.
So much for the narrative about the death of the diner as imminent, underway, or inevitable, due to factors that may include changing tastes, new competition, rising real estate values, the reluctance of younger generations to take over family-run businesses, or all of the above.
‘Your competition is another diner’
“It’s a good business,” said Yilmaz Kangal, 45, who owns the Millville Queen Diner in Millville, the Queen II Restaurant in Vineland, and expects to reopen the Malaga as the Jersey Diner in a few months.
Post-pandemic, “we’re back to normal,” he said. “I’m growing, but staying local because I don’t want to be too far from my businesses.”
At Geets — a Black Horse Pike landmark in Gloucester County — diner veteran Paul Tsiknakis and his business partners will continue the operation. The new arrangement was first reported by 42Freeway and includes longtime owner Sandy Cannon.
“We came in and saw the value of the diner, and my group decided to move in and revamp and try to keep Geets going,” Tsiknakis, 38, said. He established Ponzio’s in Brooklawn (later the Metro Diner, now a Wawa) and later bought the long-distressed PB’s Diner in Glassboro, renamed it the Monarch, and opened in 2019.
“I’m one of the few who still believe in the true Jersey diner,” Tsiknakis said.
What a ‘true Jersey diner’ can be
“We have a Pandora right down the road from Geets,” said Saban Pamuk, who along with a cousin owns the company. The firm also owns the Medport Diner, the potential closing of which earlier this year sparked an online petition and an outpouring of support.
“Diners are a community place,” said Pamuk, who’s 52 and is, like Kangal and Tsiknakis, from a diner family.
He wasn’t sure whether the diner reopenings and expansions in South Jersey constitute a trend.
“A lot depends on the deal and the circumstances,” he said, adding, “but I think there will always be diners in New Jersey.”
Said Tsiknakis: “Diners are forever in New Jersey, and the key is community. Some of our customers come in for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. And we get involved in the towns, sponsoring things and being a gathering place. You can’t say that about national chains that are competing with us.”
The opening of Amy’s at the former Star View Diner site has been delayed due to “some unforeseen issues with the condition of the building,” said Ted Kopsaftis, owner-operator of the company.
“We are working with our contractors as quickly as possible,” he said. “We are hoping it won’t be much longer ... [and as] we get closer we will begin posting updates on our website and social media.”
Sunnier days ahead?
Michael C. Gabriele, a Clifton, Passaic County author who is an authority on and fan of New Jersey diners, said a post-pandemic “rebalancing” of the business is underway.
“I don’t think things were as grim as the dire predictions made them seem,” he said. “There are encouraging signs. I’m seeing and hearing about diners increasing their hours.”
And diner nostalgia seems as strong as ever.
In Bridgewater, Somerset County, the Double AA minor league baseball team the Somerset Patriots are playing three games this summer under a new name. It’s part of a national promotion aimed at deepening connections with local communities, said Dave Marek, senior vice-president of marketing.
“We decided to go with the Jersey Diners,” he said. “Because New Jersey is the diner capital of the world.”