Thank you for your patience during my time off for my mother’s visit. I sent her packing back to Florida yesterday, hurricane threat and all. Two weeks, she was here. Two weeks.

These old Jews, all they want to eat is diner food. In Florida, they go to dinner at 4pm for their early bird specials. They fill up on the bread and salads that are out on the table. After eating the soup, they take a few bites of their huge meal and leave some room for desert, also included in the price. Then the entree gets boxed up and they get another meal or two out of it. Or sometimes, it sits in the fridge until the children visit a few months later to throw it out.

I’ve had diner food nearly every. single. day. that my mom was here. (I won’t bore you with my protein deficiency. I can’t do veggie burgers every night. I just can’t.) We ate at Junior’s on Flatbush, El Greco in Sheepshead, Alexis in Newburgh and Historic Village Diner in Red Hook to name a few. I’ve become a diner friggin connoisseur.

The diner list I posted here back in March still makes sense, although I wasn’t all that impressed with El Greco this time around. We both made the mistake of ordering falafel plates because we were exicited to see them on the menu. They were dry as fart and when I asked for tahini I got tsatsiki instead.

I’m sad to report on the passing of our much loved Sea Garden restaurant on Neptune Avenue in Brighton Beach. Rumor has it the place was shut down for violations PLUS non payment of rent or taxes. It was a pit, but it was OUR pit.

Also, in non diner related news, Mrs. Stahls on Coney Island and Brighton Beach Aves is gone! Apparently, it’s been gone for a few years now, but I just found out when we went looking for it. It’s a Subway now. And Brighton Beach Avenue has Starbucks and many, many new facades. Oh Brighton, what happened to you?