November 22, 2006
Progress Through Eradication
I'm all for change and expansion but not at the expense of history and especially not regional icons. I've got a little soft spot in my heart for much of the iconography of the Route 66 era architecture as well as the highway itself and was lucky enough to grow up just off the old beaten path in Tulsa.
This weekend they're tearing down another landmark in which many memories reside, the Metro Diner. Best Monte Cristos in the world, the only place I know of where you could get spicy fries drowned in white pepper gravy and milkshakes that took an hour to consume. I spent a vast... VAST amount of my twenties, cozied up in the big corner booth with groupings of my closest friends trying to solve the world's problems. Spent so much time there I wound up even dating one of the waitresses for a period (the free food wasn't the only perk).
Next trip home will seem weird without being able to go back to an old haunt with so much history.
Here's to arterial damaging mom & pop diners across the nation, may you thrive to infinity and may your regulars never decrease in numbers.