There are many ways one might describe Meriden’s Olympos Diner: old-fashioned and comfortably down-home are some of the first to come to mind. But sit for a bit amidst the vintage decor, talk to the customers and the owner, and the most significant descriptor will present itself: the 75-year-old eatery is, as of this year, a limited time offer.

According to popular history, the diner was originally manufactured as a train car in 1932 in Hoboken, NJ, then shipped up to Wallingford not long afterwards. In 1973, the car was brought to Meriden, where its new owner christened it the Sherrywood Diner and added a second dining room as part of the new, more permanent design.

So, many decades later, everything about the Olympos screams of old-world diner romance. The restaurant’s two dining rooms are crowded with chipping Formica tables: the counter is blue tiled in art-deco style and seems to come complete with an older man hunched over reading the paper, glasses sliding down his nose. The menu itself is straight out of the 1960s—hand-colored photos accompany descriptions of the more unusual options, which include Virginia ham and pineapple, trail mix salad (dried fruit, nuts and blue cheese) and an extensive “diet” section where everything somehow involves cottage cheese and jell-o. More conventional choices include killer triple-decker sandwiches, fried seafood of all kinds, fresh-baked Danishes, ice cream sodas and, of course, a variety of breakfast fixings. During my visit to the Olympos, I had an egg white vegetable omelet with toast and perfectly browned home fries, and my friend had an enormous Greek Salad Special—both were delicious.

Current restaurant owner Elias went into the diner business accidentally in 1980, when he bought the Sherrywood and renamed it the Olympos after his native Greece. A conversation with him quickly breaks the enchanted diner spell and lands the Olympos firmly in the practical present.

“I used to be a painter, but someone on a job asked me if I wanted to buy a diner and I thought, ‘Why not?’” he said. “I’d cooked at diners before but never owned one.”

In 27 years of business, his clientele has increased and the food has improved. Yet, despite a long and much-beloved haul, Elias seems fairly detached, perhaps overworked.

“The diner business is too many hours,” he sighed, stating that when all of his children have left for college he will sell the Olympos and move on. How much longer does that leave for this community landmark? Elias’ eldest daughter will graduate this year. As for the future of the building, Elias said that, after its sale, the Olympos may continue as a diner and it may not.

“I can’t force whoever buys it to do that,” he shrugged.

Despite the frustrations, long hours and various mundane societal and economic pressures working against a small, community-based eatery, the Olympos is continuing to flourish with its own innate charm. A chat with two friends eating a late breakfast in the next booth over from mine led to discussion about their history with the diner.

“We’ve been coming here since it was the Sherrywood,” one of the duo said. “It’s good food and cheap. We’ve made friends with the other people who come here a lot, too.”

My waitress, a middle-aged woman with smile lines and a quirky sense of humor, told me there are actually several sets of regulars who have been coming to the restaurant for upwards of ten years. She has worked at other diners before this one.

“If the restaurant closes, I suppose I’ll go work somewhere else. But we have a lot of fun here. We do,” she said with a wry smile.

With its surplus of community spirit, retro style and fantastic excess of cottage cheese, the Olympos Diner is simple, classic and going fast—not unlike the diverse fare its staff serves up daily. Get it while it’s hot.

*****
The Lowdown:
Located at 1130 Main Street, Meriden (15 minutes from campus up Rt. 66)
Phone for directions: 203-235-5636
Open 7 days; Mon-Sat 6 a.m.-9 p.m., Sunday 6 a.m.-2 p.m.

Essential menu items:

Two eggs, home fries, toast, coffee/tea–$3.15 from 6 AM-11 AM

Short stack pancakes–$3.25

Grilled cheese–$2.25

Fresh-baked Danish –$1.50

Ice cream soda–$2.25

Also in the area:

Sam’s Comic Book Shop, 862 E. Main St, Meriden (Unleash the comic book geek inside)

Craig Castle Players Theater, 59 W. Main St, Meriden (Community theater)

Jacoby’s Restaurant, 1388 E. Main St, Meriden (Family-owned restaurant famous for prime rib for meat eaters and soup for the veggie-inclined)

Dossin Park Beach, Meriden (It’s still unseasonably hot, so go for a dip)