Summit Diner landed the No. 1 spot on a new statewide ranking of nine classic New Jersey diners, cited for its 1930s railcar design and comfort-food menu.
The list, published Wednesday, Oct. 14 by travel site TakingTheKids.com, ranked "old-school" diners across the state. Summit Diner at 1 Union Place, across from the train station, came in first. The roundup highlighted the diner's art deco chrome exterior, red leather booths and counter stools. The menu drew praise too, with pork roll, egg and cheese sandwiches, corned beef hash, spinach pie and all-day pancakes all singled out.
The recognition is the latest in a string of honors for the family-run restaurant. The diner was voted No. 1 Best Diner in New Jersey for 2025 by New Jersey Digest readers and won Best NJ Diner Breakfast from 94.3 The Point, according to LocalMediaNJ.
Michele Greberis, who owns the diner with her husband Jim, has overseen the business through a recent milestone of its own. The diner completed a full exterior restoration by September, returning the stainless-steel façade to its original appearance. The work was funded through a national historic-preservation grant. Nancy Adams, executive director of Summit Downtown Inc., coordinated the grant submission.
The restoration included repairing gutters, replacing missing black molding, restoring the art deco door and installing energy-efficient lighting. The enamel panels were cleaned rather than repainted. The diner's sign, which had been down for months after a truck struck the corner of the building, was also restored and re-electrified.
"It's wonderful to see the diner shine once again," Greberis said in a September interview with LocalMediaNJ.
The diner's roots stretch back to 1929, when a lunch wagon on the site began serving railroad workers and downtown employees. The current stainless-steel O'Mahony structure replaced it. TakingTheKids.com dates the building to 1938; LocalMediaNJ places it at 1939. The site is among the oldest operating diners in the state, according to TakingTheKids.com.
The Greberis family has run the diner since 1964, when Michele's father, George Contorousis, and Jim's uncle, John Grabieris, purchased it. Jim has worked at the diner daily since before the couple married.
Greberis told LocalMediaNJ that business remains steady, with regulars and new customers filling the booths. The full nine-diner list is available at TakingTheKids.com.
