Diner

213 E. Main St.

329-6642

Nestled into a narrow space in downtown Norman is a restaurant so confident in itself, it doesn’t even bother with adjectives.

Inside the Diner, a fixture on Main Street, there’s a row of olive green booths snuggled cozily across from a row of faded pink stools at the counter. And chances are, it’s probably packed.

“You could come in here and find a policeman by a college kid by a homeless person by a sorority girl,” said Mark Amspacher, owner of the Diner for over 15 years. “There’s no certain clientele.”

They all come for the atmosphere and for the authentic diner food, Amspacher said.

“It’s a meeting place where the food’s real,” he said. “We don’t open a bunch of cans or bags.”

Popular items on the Diner’s menu include the Eggarito, a flour tortilla covered in ranchero sauce and filled with scrambled eggs, vegetables and cheese and the handmade chicken fried steak, Amspacher said.

All the regular breakfast items are available as well — pancakes, bacon and oatmeal — and some not so regular ones, such as hamburgers and chili. The Diner is open for lunch until 2 p.m., but the burgers are available at 8 a.m. as well.

For Mike Matthews, Amspacher’s grocery supplier and customer at The Diner for 10 years, it’s like stepping into a diner from the past when he comes in.

“I feel like I’m going to a small-town cafe,” Matthews said.

From the booths to the stools to the payment methods, The Diner is authentic ‘50s. No credit cards are accepted, just cash and local checks.

“That’s [just] the way it is here,” Amspacher said.

With its narrow quarters, made-to-order food and personalized decor, the Diner is like the anti-IHOP.

“It just seems like one of those places you’ve got to tell people about,” Matthews said. “It’s on the very opposite end [from] a chain.”

Sunny Side Up

428 W. Robinson St.

321-2450

Good service, quality food and a clean restaurant is the code by which Lynn Do operates.

As the owner of Sunny Side Up for nearly 15 years, Do has acquired a faithful group of regulars by running her restaurant that way, she said.

“I have regulars every day, sometimes six or seven days a week,” Do said.

The simplicity of the restaurant keeps them coming back, according to Do. On weekends, before a football game, it’s always busy and the line often stretches out the door, she said.

“We really put out the food fast on the weekend,” she said.

The omelets are the most popular dishes, and with the highest price at $6 for an omelet, it’s a good value, Do said.

“We’re all really friendly over here,” Do said. “Our food is fast. You don’t have to wait longer than 10 minutes [for your food to arrive].”

Ozzie’s Diner

1700 Lexington Ave.

364-9835

Omelets and airplanes are both on the menu at Ozzie’s Diner, located at Westheimer Air Field in Norman.

Specializing in the affordable pre-flight or after-flight meal for hungry pilots, Ozzie’s is also a hit with families with young children, said employee Angela Calidonio.

“[People] bring all their little ones out here and they watch the airplanes come and go,” Calidonio said. “It’s a major perk.”

But even those with no interest in airplanes can find something to like at Ozzie’s, with its large menu and home-cooked meals.

“It’s non-industrial food,” Calidonio said. “It’s all made here from the pancake mix to the roast beef.”

And for the extra hungry breakfast aficionado, there’s the made-to-order $4.95 all-you-can-eat breakfast.

— Dusty Somers/The Daily