The Randolph Diner

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The diner label is misleading. I’d say that this place and The Cheesecake Factory are on the same family tree. Is this surmised lineage a bad thing? Certainly not. It’s huge, a two-storied, stone ark on a corner of Route 10 with so much parking that I had to walk around the whole building before finding the entrance. You’re led past the kitchen and a tray of triangular slices of chocolate cake, on your right, to an ocean of dining space. The color scheme in the first tributary is kiwi, vertical tiling glazed with brown and lime while the booths are the softest yet tightest chanel in Shrek green. I mean, I was half expecting it to have a massage feature with the way it felt. Every tiled wall is another cliff face beyond which more diners wade. If you end up in the main tributary, the low ceiling will mean that you smell every order that passes by—fish, pancakes, burgers, and everything in between. Remember: Cheesecake Factory. If possible, you want to sit in this main area and as far from the kitchen as possible. Here, the ceiling is higher, where huge lampshades, with donumbek proportions, drop down. However, it’s more than the high ceilings you’re after. A painted mural with a narrative layering element reminiscent of Basquiat fit into a reimagination of Guernica fit for a schoolyard, with some of Palmer C. Hayden’s palette, renders the space with sensational, one of kind element. Of course, seating, tiling, lighting all have their place, but any diner, bar, and grill can bake an ambiance from these ingredients. To add art to this kind of eternal space picks up a special note of eternity. 

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Drink: Coffee

They have the same gold packets as Acropolis Diner in Poughkeepsie, New York, and I noticed it before I ordered. I knew it was either going to be terrible or tolerable. It wasn’t irredeemable, especially for being bottomless. The real curiosity was the Thunder Group San Marino melamine mug it came in. It’s a lightweight, 9 oz. vessel that is obviously made to stack, but it’s giving Cubone. Anyways, the coffee: not bitter, not too sweet, enough flavor to act alone, and definitely worth sipping on.

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Food: Split Pea Soup

One of the four soups of the day. Honestly, I couldn’t help but love it. I don’t know why. It came with like a lid of croutons, but even those were little bursts of flavor. It’s a blended soup, yet it has so much character and flavor. It could have been anything. However, it is perfectly salted not gloppy but not liquid smooth, and it warmed my soul. If you want to add a little comfort to your day, here it is in yellowish brown. Oh, and while I wish the croutons were on the side, I’m so grateful that they didn’t serve it with saltines. 

Avocado Mango Salad

Everything in the description is there as promised  (Mixed greens, avocado, mangoes, strawberries, tomatoes, onions, almonds & citrus dressing) plus the welcome surprise of blueberries. They put the citrus dressing on the side, which is really nice. It isn’t very viscous, even more spill-prone than its powdered sugar glaze appearance let’s on. I wouldn’t have ever put red onion with mango, but it worked. I recalled mango salsa, and this made more sense. However, if you’re a fruit and veggies separatist, I would say to avoid this dish. It’s like a fruit cup on a veggie diet. Was I full after two bites? Yes. Do I blame the soup? Yes. Is all this completely ludicrous? You betcha. 

Price: Coffee=$3; Avocado Mango Salad=$15.95; Cup of the soup of the day=$5.50

Hours: Everyday {6–2}

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