I love my town in CT, but there is a shortage of good old-fashioned, late night diners. That’s why, my sister and I decided to take a short trip to Olympia Diner in Newington, right off of the Berlin Turnpike to get our diner fix the other day.
The drive was about 25 minutes, but it ended up being worth it for the fun we had when we arrived around 5:30 pm for dinner. To start, the restaurant had a classic vintage feel to it, equipped with leather booths and a jukebox at each table. The menu listed diner staples like sandwiches and burgers and common breakfast items like omelettes with home fries, pancakes, and French toast. Katie ended up ordering the Philly steak sandwich with fries and I selected a BLT.
The service at Olympia Diner was great; we got our food quickly and the waitress was kind and accommodating. The food was also tasty and pretty inexpensive as far as diners go. I would recommend this spot as a great option for the rest stop if you’re traveling along the Berlin Turnpike or even for a fun night out with friends because it stays open late, is cost effective, and has a homey atmosphere. You can read more about them on their website at: www.olympiadiner.net.
Post dinner, we walked outside to take in the view of the diner’s neon sign as it got darker out. The sky was beautiful over the roof of the diner.
We saw a Friendly’s right across the way and decided to get ice cream for the sake of nostalgia and killing more time before driving home. I remember when we were kids, we used to go to Friendly’s and order watermelon ice cream with gummy bears in a cone; that was our favorite combination.
When Katie and I got to Friendly’s we decided to order Friend-Zs: their equivalent of a thick milk shake. I got the Oreo flavor and Katie the peanut butter cup. We ate in the car with the A/C on since it was a hot night, talking for about an hour about our hopes for the summer ahead.
Afterwards, we looped back to Olympia Diner to take pictures of the view before taking back roads home. The night was the perfect opportunity to catch up with my sister. Below are some of my favorite photos we took while we were there.
The Bucketlister 