First Official Diner Review

THE COURTESY ON HAMPTON DINER REVIEW ONE:

The Courtesy on Hampton has been my primary morning home since it opened...around ten years ago. It is on Hampton right where the old Arena used to be and up the street from Arena Liquors. The son rises over the Salvation Army building across the street. There are seven booths, the two on the left marked “not smoking” and the other five to the right go all the way down to the bathrooms. It is a classy place. They have a mens room and a womans room. There are 12 stools and of course everything is prepared right behind the counter.


I get there at some ungodly time and there are always a group of older guys, nice huys who sit at the counter and smoke and read the paper and talk about the weather, politics, sports and of course the morning jumble...whatever. It is some fascinating stuff. I did not join them at the counter so I was considered kind of “standoffish” but...they were kind and never beat me up or mocked me. Over the years several of them have croaked...probably because of their diet.

A lady named Janice used to rule the roost there. Janice was a fifty something...180 plus pound woman with hair dyed an off color of...well...I guess it was red or rust or reddish...anyway...Janice was crazy as the proverbial shit house rat. She had a gruff personality but when she liked you she took care of you and over time...she liked me. janice disappeared a few years ago the way the marginally crazy people on the fringes of society often do. There are only about 4 or 5 women who work there in the morning and they are excellent. Recently I have only been going there in Fridays and Saturdays and I have the same girls who cook and serve and they are very kind, often even making me a fresh pot of tea of every morning because...I like to drink iced tea in the morning.



I have been eating the same thing there almost every time I go there for all that time. Hashbrowns with cheese and white onions, two sausage patties and white toast. That and an iced tea. Now sometimes when things get wild and weird...I will have a half order of biscuits and gravy with a couple sausage patties....and and iced tea. The food is hot, the food is fresh. They of course also have the slinger, with Edmunds chili...beans or no beans, whatever you want. The bottom line is that the Courtesy...they are just good people. Most people smoke. The food is hot and fresh and they do a pretty good job taking care of people....especially the regulars.

The decor is...lovely. It is one of the newest diners around and they did it in retro style. It is all black and white with some red trim. The booths are hard plastic and the stools are a VERY classy red vinal. The lighting is properly florescent. It is all good and it is centrally located on the 40 corridor and frankly...it is all good. 9/10 Slingers.