Skylight Diner Review

The GF and I were in NYC, near Penn Station. Craving some breakfast, we decided to stop by Skylight Diner on the West Side.

I love a good diner - no better place to get home-cooked, hearty fare. 

As with most diners, you get a small juice and coffee/tea with your meal. 

Mexican Frittata [$9.95]

I went with a Mexican frittata, which featured a huge disc of egg, cheddar cheese, jalapenos, tomatoes, and onions. It came with two slices of buttered wheat toast. 

Huevos Rancheros [$8.95]

The GF had the huevos rancheroes which came with creamy black beans, crisp corn tortillas topped with green chile salsa, and lightly fried eggs. Interestingly, it came with some vegetable fried rice as well. 

So if you're in Midtown Manhattan and looking for some down-home comfort food, check out Skylight Diner.

Midtown Diner III Review

Unless you're on South Street, there really aren't many places in Center City Philly that are open late on the weekends. And even on South Street, most joints close at or before 2AM. That makes the belly of this pig sad - especially after a Saturday night out. I suppose I've been spoiled by NYC's late night food scene. 

Still there are some options out there. Having tried Midtown Diner II around Midtown Village, the GF and I decided to get some late night eats from Midtown Diner III in the Rittenhouse area. Keep in mind, we're talking about drunk-tank food in a diner setting - affordable, edible (at best), and open 24 hours. But really, sometimes that's all you need at 3 or 4AM.

Mozzarella Sticks [$6.45]
 

The GF was in the mood for mozzarella sticks so we had to get those. Clearly frozen, these could have been fried a bit longer. They were a bit doughy and the marinara was definitely needed to offset some of the freezer burn. 

Cheeseburger [$6.55]
 

Despite the number of drinks I had that night, I took a bite of this cheeseburger and realized there was definitely no cheese involved! Perhaps they were out? Still, the burger hit the spot, though it was clearly just a standard diner-style burger. No medium-rare cookery going on here. 

Fries [$2.95]
 

We also got an order of fries. We got takeout so they were unfortunately a bit soggy by the time we got home 10 minutes later. They were seasoned with salt, but a bit starchy. Still, sometimes you just need some carbs to soak "it" up.

If you're coming to the Midtown Diner III expecting great diner food, you may be disappointed. Keep in mind, this is a review of late night eats so the expectations have to be lowered just a bit and there's the chance that the regular menu is decent. Overall, while the quality could be better, the fact that it's open 24 hours is nice.

http://philadelphia.menupages.com/restaurants/midtown-iii/

Midtown II Diner Review

Something I miss about NY? The 24 hour diners that you can inevitably find throughout the city. After a late night out - diner food really hits the spot. It's cheap, it's plentiful, and it tastes like home.

As the GF and I walked home from a friend's party one night, we felt the sudden pang of hunger. You know the feeling. You've been fed plenty at the dinner party, yet the mix of alcohol and festivities has you yearning for just a bit more. Or perhaps it's just me, which I'll pretend makes me sad, and just further induces my fervent desire for food.

Luckily, Philly has Midtown II Diner, which hits most of those high (or low if you prefer) notes! Located in Center City, I would say it is the place to go when it's past 1 or 2AM and everything other than the Wendy's has shut down.


Hamburger Deluxe ($6.89)
Berumda Onion, Lettuce, Tomato, French Fries, and Coleslaw 

The GF went with what was a decent rendition of the burger. It was cooked to a medium-well temp as you never know about the quality of the meat at these places. However, the bermuda onions were grilled nicely - they maintained their texture, but without that dreadful aftertaste of raw onion. The cole slaw was bland, but for less than $7 - this is a steal. The fries? Well I'll talk about them later!

Midtown II Reuben ($7.29)
Corned Beef, Sauerkraut, Russian Dressing and Imported Swiss, Served Open-Faced 

I went with the Reuben - a sandwich I adore. This was an open faced version, which surprised me at first. This shouldn't have been much of a surprise since that's how it's clearly stated on the menu - but I bet you can tell my state of mind at the time (did that even make sense?). I'll pretend it did.

In any case, the corned beef was succulent, but could have been seasoned a bit more. The rye had the necessary slightly bitter element I was looking for. The tang of the sauerkraut was a win in my book, but perhaps I should have asked for that and the Russian dressing on the side since by the time we got home (less than 10 minutes later), the sandwich was a bit limp.

French Fries ($3.09)

Of course, I didn't realize the GF had fries included in her order, so I went with an entire order just for me. Out of the three items we ordered, I would easily say that this had the least value for the price. A pittance in terms of the amount of fries (the glutton in me tends to speak the most), these fries were also not seasoned at all and did not retain a crisp texture in the 10 minutes it took to travel home. Disappointing, but devoured nonetheless.

Overall, Midtown II is a 24 hour diner - and that's its value. It may not have the best food, but for the price and the availability, I'm sure I'll be back if I'm out and about during the wee hours.



http://www.midtown2restaurant.com/