Northern Virginia-Diners, Dives and Delights

Oh go ahead, you know you want to.  Occasionally you just have to indulge that little longing for something that just might not be good for you.  You can regret it tomorrow but today let's go ahead and hit a few of the oh so good but bad for your local joints.

If you are looking for the last surviving diner in Fairfax City then you need to stop at the 29 Diner at the intersection of Routes 29 and 123.   Originally called the Tastee 29 Diner when the doors opened July 1947 the diner was on the busiest "major" highway between DC and Northern Virginia.  Open 24 hours a day the diner features the standard food you would expect to find from an old fashioned diner.  Old fashion ham and eggs for breakfast, patty melt for lunch and golden brown southern fried chicken for dinner.  Their slogan "Quality is Remembered Long After Price is Forgotten" sums up a meal at the 29 Diner.   So if you are looking for a trip back in history then go check out the last diner in Fairfax City.

Are you feeling a craving for a chili dog and cold beer?  Then you need to head down the road to the City of Vienna and pull up a chair at the Vienna Inn.  Another local eatery the Vienna Inn can trace its history back to 1960.  The Inn has always been "crummy beer joint" though there was a time when that might have been more true than today.  A bit of redecorating in early 2000 cleaned up a few of the rough edges but not all of them.  Though they serve other food besides chili dogs, those are the item that made the Vienna Inn famous.  With an unpretentious atmosphere, cheap food and cold beer the place is always packed.  Don't worry if you don't want a cold beer you can also get a soda-self serve of course.  Insults from the waitress are included at no extra charge!

Anyone in Arlington looking for a late night cup of coffee knows to skip Starbucks and head to Bob and Edith's on Columbia Pike.  Another diner open 24 hours a day you can always get one of the "Round the Clock Specials" featuring steak, eggs, grits and toast. You won't walk away hungry.  The secret at Bob and Edith's is the Pecan Waffle and an endless cup of coffee.  Be prepared for a wait if you go on a Sunday morning or late on a Saturday night. 

Our last stop is to grab some sweet treats at the Heidelberg Pastry Shoppe in Arlington.  Opened in 1975 by Wolfgang and Carla Bucher the display case alone will give you a sugar rush before you ever take a bite of any of the wonderful treats.  While you are trying to decide what you want to eat, pour yourself a free cup of coffee and look over all of the cookies, cinnamon buns, breads or strudel.  Do you need a cake for a special occasion?  Heidelberg Pastry Shoppe has some incredible cakes including wedding cakes.

So have you felt your arteries clogging as we ate our way through a few of the local diners, dives and delights?  Not to worry you can hop on your bike and go for a ride to work off a few of those extra calories. 

©2008 Cindy Jones. All rights reserved.