Maine Diner
Encyclopedia
The Maine Diner is a diner
in Wells, Maine
. It serves breakfast
, lunch, and dinner
.
The diner, which has a seating capacity of 90 and a year-round staff of about 60, serves an average of 1,200 to 1,500 patrons on a good summer day. The restaurant is known for its seafood chowder and lobster
pie and other Down East
fare. It serves breakfast all day. Behind the diner is a garden which provides vegetables and herbs for the diner's dishes.
The diner, "oft-hyped and popular with tourists", served its 2-millionth guest in 1999. On December 17, 2008, the diner served its 5-millionth customer.
During the mid-1950s, the old building was moved and a new building was built. The Totons lived next to the Diner, in the house that is now the diner's gift shop. The diner was open year-round until Margaret died in 1966. After she died, Toton closed the restaurant for a year. After that, Toton opened the diner from Labor Day
to Memorial Day
and closed it for the summer.
Toton ran the diner until he had a heart attack in January 1980; he died the following month.
Brothers Myles and Dick Henry, purchased the Diner in 1983. Their first customer was a man who crashed into a pole near the parking lot. He had mistaken the diner for a bar he was looking for. Myles died in 2010. The diner is managed by Jim MacNeill.
), as a banner on the restaurant states. Also, it was mentioned in the magazine Travel + Leisure
and in the Jane and Michael Stern
Book Eat Your Way Across The USA. Cartoonist
Wiley Miller
stated that the Maine Diner is the model for Flo's Offshore Diner in his Non Sequitur
cartoon strip.
The Maine Diner has seen some famous guests, including boxing announcer Bob Sheridan
, a Boxing Hall of Fame member; and Eddie Andelman
, a sports radio talk host. It has a platter named after the Phantom Gourmet
.
Next door to the Maine Diner is a gift shop called "Remember the Maine", the famous battle cry of the Spanish-American War
. It sells Maine
and Maine Diner souvenirs.
Diner
A diner, also spelled dinor in western Pennsylvania is a prefabricated restaurant building characteristic of North America, especially in the Midwest, in New York City, in Pennsylvania and in New Jersey, and in other areas of the Northeastern United States, although examples can be found throughout...
in Wells, Maine
Wells, Maine
Wells is a town in York County, Maine, United States. Founded in 1643, it is the third-oldest town in Maine. The population was 9,400 at the 2000 census. Wells Beach is a popular summer destination.-History:...
. It serves breakfast
Breakfast
Breakfast is the first meal taken after rising from a night's sleep, most often eaten in the early morning before undertaking the day's work...
, lunch, and dinner
Dinner
Dinner is usually the name of the main meal of the day. Depending upon culture, dinner may be the second, third or fourth meal of the day. Originally, though, it referred to the first meal of the day, eaten around noon, and is still occasionally used for a noontime meal, if it is a large or main...
.
The diner, which has a seating capacity of 90 and a year-round staff of about 60, serves an average of 1,200 to 1,500 patrons on a good summer day. The restaurant is known for its seafood chowder and lobster
Lobster
Clawed lobsters comprise a family of large marine crustaceans. Highly prized as seafood, lobsters are economically important, and are often one of the most profitable commodities in coastal areas they populate.Though several groups of crustaceans are known as lobsters, the clawed lobsters are most...
pie and other Down East
Down East
In New England, the term Down East is applied in several different ways. In the narrowest sense, Down East refers to the coast of the U.S. state of Maine from Penobscot Bay to the Canadian border....
fare. It serves breakfast all day. Behind the diner is a garden which provides vegetables and herbs for the diner's dishes.
The diner, "oft-hyped and popular with tourists", served its 2-millionth guest in 1999. On December 17, 2008, the diner served its 5-millionth customer.
History
Socrates (Soky) Toton, an Albanian immigrant, purchased the original Maine Diner in the early 1950s. Toton did the cooking and his wife Margaret waited on tables along with another full-time waitress (Millie?) and two part-time waitresses. The Maine Diner became well known for their made-from-scratch food; they grew much of their own produce behind the diner.During the mid-1950s, the old building was moved and a new building was built. The Totons lived next to the Diner, in the house that is now the diner's gift shop. The diner was open year-round until Margaret died in 1966. After she died, Toton closed the restaurant for a year. After that, Toton opened the diner from Labor Day
Labor Day
Labor Day is a United States federal holiday observed on the first Monday in September that celebrates the economic and social contributions of workers.-History:...
to Memorial Day
Memorial Day
Memorial Day is a United States federal holiday observed on the last Monday of May. Formerly known as Decoration Day, it originated after the American Civil War to commemorate the fallen Union soldiers of the Civil War...
and closed it for the summer.
Toton ran the diner until he had a heart attack in January 1980; he died the following month.
Brothers Myles and Dick Henry, purchased the Diner in 1983. Their first customer was a man who crashed into a pole near the parking lot. He had mistaken the diner for a bar he was looking for. Myles died in 2010. The diner is managed by Jim MacNeill.
Accolades
The Maine Diner was featured on NBC's The Today Show (invited to the show by Jane and Michael SternJane and Michael Stern
Jane Grossman Stern and Michael Stern are American writers who specialize in books about travel, food, and popular culture...
), as a banner on the restaurant states. Also, it was mentioned in the magazine Travel + Leisure
Travel + Leisure
Travel + Leisure is a travel magazine based in New York City, New York. Published 12 times a year, it has 4.8 million readers, according to its corporate media kit. It is put out by American Express Publishing Corporation, which is a wholly owned subsidiary of American Express Company led by...
and in the Jane and Michael Stern
Jane and Michael Stern
Jane Grossman Stern and Michael Stern are American writers who specialize in books about travel, food, and popular culture...
Book Eat Your Way Across The USA. Cartoonist
Cartoonist
A cartoonist is a person who specializes in drawing cartoons. This work is usually humorous, mainly created for entertainment, political commentary or advertising...
Wiley Miller
Wiley Miller
David Wiley Miller , an American cartoonist whose work is characterized by wry wit and trenchant social satire, is best known for his comic strip Non Sequitur, which he signs Wiley...
stated that the Maine Diner is the model for Flo's Offshore Diner in his Non Sequitur
Non Sequitur (comic strip)
Non Sequitur is a comic strip created by Wiley Miller in 1992 and syndicated by Universal Press Syndicate to over 700 newspapers...
cartoon strip.
The Maine Diner has seen some famous guests, including boxing announcer Bob Sheridan
Bob Sheridan
Bob Sheridan, nicknamed Colonel Bob Sheridan, is a boxing and MMA commentator. He has broadcast over 10,000 fights on radio and television, with 890 world title fights...
, a Boxing Hall of Fame member; and Eddie Andelman
Eddie Andelman
Eddie Andelman is an American sports radio talk show host. He has worked over 40 years in sports talk radio in Boston and has appeared on over 100 sports stations all over the country.- Career :...
, a sports radio talk host. It has a platter named after the Phantom Gourmet
Phantom Gourmet
The Phantom Gourmet is a food-related television program with reviews of New England area restaurants from an anonymous critic. The show airs on WSBK-TV in Boston, Massachusetts and WLWC-TV in Providence, Rhode Island each Saturday and Sunday morning, with a half-hour episode composed of older...
.
Next door to the Maine Diner is a gift shop called "Remember the Maine", the famous battle cry of the Spanish-American War
Spanish-American War
The Spanish–American War was a conflict in 1898 between Spain and the United States, effectively the result of American intervention in the ongoing Cuban War of Independence...
. It sells Maine
Maine
Maine is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the east and south, New Hampshire to the west, and the Canadian provinces of Quebec to the northwest and New Brunswick to the northeast. Maine is both the northernmost and easternmost...
and Maine Diner souvenirs.