Just like most people, we always drive on by as we make our way to Vegas. This time, we decided to…read moremake it a point to stop by on our way back from Vegas to California. We came in on a Friday afternoon, around lunchtime, and were surprised to see that the place was busy! There are a lot of tourists that stop by - and rightfully so, as they have decorated the place very uniquely.
We were told the wait for a table would be around 20 minutes, were handed a beeper, and were encouraged to wait by the gift shop. The gift shop offers Thrifty Ice Creams, other sweet treats, and so many different merchandise items! It was definitely a nice stop to stretch your legs and to browse around.
After our beeper went off, we were escorted to our booths and met our waitress. It took her a while to come by and help us with our orders. I mean, it's lunch rush; the place inside is loud, a bit chaotic, and honestly, it just has a charm on its own. Their walls are tacked with pictures and posters, and I love the little fact booklet showing how much everything cost back in 1996.
Finally, after placing our orders, the food came! We ordered grilled cheese with French fries for the kids, tuna melts, NY steak strips, and root beer float. The kids' meals were solid; they loved them, and the root beer was great and refreshing! I loved that it came first so that we could enjoy it on a really hot day! So the float was much needed. The tuna melts and the steak itself were really good, great even. The sides were okay - the corn that came with the steak seems like it came out of a can; the mashed potatoes were dense and heavy, and while it may be a great solid side, it was a bit too heavy and a bit saltier than our preference. The tuna melts came with French fries, which we upgraded to onion rings. The onion rings were delicious; we'll need a bigger portion next time! The soup of the day was clam chowder, and we appreciated that it was delicious.
We were initially missing a few things for the table, but our waitress checked in on us multiple times and eventually got us everything we needed. She also explained that their dishwasher was down or having an issue, but even then, they got through the lunch rush that Friday afternoon. We finished our meal and walked through the gift shop toward the back of the diner. There, we found a duck pond with 3 ducks and a lot of turtles in the water who seemed hungry, as they approached us immediately when we looked at them, plus some neat statues and a stage!
Overall, it is a neat place to stop by at least once! If you don't have time to sit down and have lunch or dinner, you can always stretch your legs in the gift shop and perhaps enjoy a thrifty ice cream or a root beer float.