Metro 29 Diner

Image Credit: Flickr user jagosaurus

Metro 29 Diner is a free standing diner on route 29 in Arlington, and has the great distinction of not only being one of the best diners in the area, but also a locally owned one as well. It’s hard to miss this place as it maintains the traditional diner exterior, with just barely enough chrome and neon lighting to outshine a Japanese Decotora truck.

It's like a slot machine, only it spits out blinding death. And delicious noodles.

The interior of the diner has been renovated and has a very contemporary and clean feel to it, unlike the traditional leather booths and mini jukeboxes of chains like Silver Diner. Think of Metro 29 Diner as a fancier IHOP. Less screaming, more pie.

Speaking of pie, the desserts at Metro 29 are outstanding. The display case that greets you at the front door warrants a viewing, with enormous slices of cake, pie, and canolis. ENORMOUS. Their slices of Boston Creme Pie puts Rhode Island into complete darkness. And who wouldn’t want to die by way of pie? Much better than seppuku.

The dish portions are also nothing to scoff at here. I ordered the challah bread French Toast, because, clearly, I still can’t get enough of the Frenchies. The jumbo slices of French toast are amazing. Thick cut, soaked in egg and butter, and good enough to be eaten on their own without accouterments. I had it with two eggs sunny side up and a side of bacon. Eggs cooked sunny side up is an art, because you run the fine line of either overcooking the yolks or not cooking them enough. Fortunately, the cooks here are the Van Goghs of egg prep, because these eggs came out perfectly. The ‘side’ of bacon actually was about 10 strips of pig, no snout, little grease and perfectly crisp.

Service is friendly and fast, just the way a diner should be. Our waitress was quick to take down orders, and the food came out in less than 15 minutes.

If there were to be one complain I have about this place, it’s the fact that they don’t serve real maple syrup here. I do my best to avoid my intake of high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) at all times. It’s easy enough to do during my normal diet during the week, because I avoid refined sugars altogether, but during cheat meals, I’ll have to pay extra care to check the ingredients on things like preserves and syrup. Metro 29 Diner serves up Maple Flavored Syrup, which is why I went with the nude French Bread, but I wasn’t disappointed in the least.

Metro 29 is a great place greasy spoon along I-66 and Highway 29. The wait time varies depending on when you go, but Saturday mornings are generally relaxed and you can usually get a seat without much of a wait. Definitely plan an off the rails meal here, and be smart enough to save room for dessert at the end. Highly recommended, and I’ll be back here again.

View a map of Metro 29 Diner here.

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