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New
England dining >>> New England roadside dining -- Harry's,
Westboro, Mass., and Vernon Diner, Vernon, Conn.
Exit interviews:
Finding the best restaurants right off the highway
If you're tired of the mediorce
generic, anytown restaurant selections near the highway, then
these local New England roadside restaurants should provide a
delicious remedy
 Harry's
Restaurant and Dairy Bar, Westboro, Mass.
by Eric H.
WESTBORO, MASS.-- Harry's
Restaurant and Dairy Bar looks out of  place
on commercial Route 9, but that's a good thing. On a road where
you can purchase everything from microfiber sofas to cell phones
that do everything except recite the Declaration of Independence,
Harry's Restaurant and Dairy Bar bucks every trend by sporting
an old-fashioned "Drive-in....Ice Cream...Fried Clams"
sign out in front of a small, worn out looking diner-type building.
The minute we saw that old-fashioned
"Drive-in....Ice Cream...Fried Clams" sign out front
on fast-paced, modern Route 9, we knew there was something special
going on inside this vinyl roadside palace that serves breakfast
early in the morning and dinners past midnight.
What we found was something beyond
the hearty eggs and substantial club sandwiches expected of this
genre -- in the kitchen
resided a culinary genius with sophisticated leanings. We found
it fascinating that someone who could turn out delicious New
England diner standards like full-bodied fried clams, pancakes
and tuna melts could also create delicious pesto-stuffed salmon,
crab-stuffed haddock, steak house-quality baby back ribs and
Boston North End-caliber pastas -- chicken and broccoli alfredo,
and chicken marinara to name a few.
The reason for Harry's high quality
has deep roots. Harry Cohen opened Harry's in nearby Shrewsbury
in 1946 and moved his restaurant to its current Westboro location
in 1968. He created a legion of satisfied customers by offering
high quality meals at low prices. His son, John eventually assumed
business operations. That second generation has maintained the
high standards created by the father.
'We specialize in good old-fashioned
food, great comfort food," said Harry's General Manager
Sue Ryan, who has worked at the restaurant for 30 years. "We
make everything fresh -- the sauces, the gravy, we do it all.
It's good downhome food."
Ryan added, "John is very
particular about what we buy and how the chefs prepare the food.
He works with the chefs constantly."
While locals create the main
clientele at Harry's, many come from Massachusetts' South Shore
and even as far away as southern New Hampshire to sample Harry's
hearty meals. Ryan said the fried clams are the signature meal,
although one could argue that anything on the menu fits that
category.
The clam industry has recently
seen a big price surge, but Harry's has maintained their reasonable
costs.
"Prices went up drastically,
but we didn't raise ours," said Ryan. "We don't make
money on the clams, but we are happy to continue to service them
to our customers."
Harry's high quality meals are
accompanied with drinks ranging from wine and beer to incredibly
tangy lime rickeys. Desserts aren't for the faint hearted, with
mammouth and tasty versions of strawberry shortcake, ice cream
sundaes, ice cream stand-like homemade ice cream, and delicious
pies. With most full meals under $12 and a waitstaff equally
kind to families, senior citizens and truckers alike, Harry's
is one stop roadside dining at its finest -- good enough for
the urban fussbudget to the blue-collar clientele knowing it's
no accident that a restaurant has successfully stayed in business
since 1946.
"Here, you'll see a limo
or Jaguar parked alongside a motorcycle," said Ryan. "All
walks of life come to Harry's."
Harry's
Restaurant and Dairy Bar,
149 Turnpike Road (Route 9), Westboro, Mass.(508) 366-8302.
 Vernon
Diner, Vernon, Conn.
by Eric H.
VERNON, CONN. (New England USA)
Just the mention of Exit 65 off Interstate 84 in Vernon, Conn.,
significantly elevates taste buds levels. The Vernon Diner is,
no doubt, a major player, in this salivary revelation.
With hundreds of menu items,
thousands of calories, and seemingly millions of smiling faces
admiring the home-cooked food, the Vernon Diner represents the
best qualities in a diner-type restaurant. Family friendly 24-hour
service 365 days a year, a convenient location right off the
highway and an incredible array of food selections including
triple decker club sandwiches, roast meats, steak and chops,
seafood, Italian and Greek specialties, sandwiches, wraps and
a huge breakfast section.
We discovered the Vernon Diner
by accident. Nearby Rein's Deli -- another marvelous restaurant
with its New York City -caliber deli meats and to-die-for deserts
--had a line going out the doors on a recent trip back from Virginia
Beach, Va. Disappointed and simultaneously starving, we spotted
the Vernon Diner a few hundred yards down the road.
Located in a former Howard Johnson's
building (there's no mistaking that roof structure) and open
since 2000, the Vernon Diner is large with a counter/stool area
and a cavernous dining room. An impressive fish tank livens up
the big dining room, but the real life comes from the food. Vernon
may not be a seaside town, but you'd never know it by sampling
the fresh and very tasty baked stuff filet of sole florentine.
As we all know, sole can be rather bland if not prepared well,
but the Vernon Diner surpassed all expectations with a tender
version with accompanying fresh spinach. The Greek mousaka we
sampled was a huge portion and defined the word "flavorful."
-- not too heavy and seasoned perfectly. It came with a Greek
salad, which had a wonderful salad dressing, a touch of oregano,
olive oil and balsamic vinegar and plenty of feta cheese.
Janice, a waitress who has worked
at the Vernon Diner for two-and-one-half years, said that the
corn beef and cabbage and fish dishes are quite popular at the
Vernon Diner, and that the deserts are made fresh weekly.
"It is one of the nicest
places to be," said Janice. "It is like family. People
love to come here."
The Vernon Diner satisfies every
taste, as evidenced by some truly delicious-looking and beyond
abundant selections we saw the waitresses bringing to the patrons.
It is a feast with a touch of sophistication and low prices --
the perfect place for the blue collar truck drivers to the most
finnicky New Yorkers.
Vernon Diner, 453 Hartford
Turnpike (Route 30), Exit 65 (I-84), Vernon, Conn.
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