Here's How New Jersey Became The Diner Capital Of The World

NEW JERSEY — How did New Jersey become the world's diner capital? There's a much more interesting answer than "because New Jersey has a lot of them" — more than 500, or approximately 1 per 16,918 people or 1 per 16 square miles.

There are several narratives for how diners came about — some would credit New Jersey as the concept's creator while others grant different states the claim. But either way, it's impossible to tell the story of "lunch cars," stainless-steal exteriors and late-night fries without giving the Garden State the glory it deserves.

Some would say the concept began with Walter Scott. In 1872, the Rhode Island entrepreneur repurposed a horse-pulled wagon into a car that served sandwiches, pies, eggs and coffee to hungry passersby late at night. The "lunch wagon" concept caught on, and T.H. Buckley — of Worcester, Massachusetts — created an industry of manufacturing lunch vehicles.

Many credit Buckley as the inventor of the diner, with the Worcester Lunch Car Company. The cars had large wheels, overhangs, frosted glass and murals. Indoors, you'd find basic stoves and an ice box.

But as is often the case with the history of invention, credit — deserved or not — often goes to the recipient of the patent. In 1893, Worcester's Charles Palmer received the first patent for the diner, which he called a "Night-Lunch Wagon."

One could argue that New England were the foundational blues musicians of diners, while New Jersey are The Beatles. While the former developed a rhythm found in all modern popular music, the latter arguably perfected rock and roll.

New Jersey enters the story in July 3, 1912, when Jerry O'Mahony founded his namesake diner company in Elizabeth. Jerry and Daniel O'Mahoney and John Hamf built a lunch wagon, which operated at Transfer Station in Union City. Restaurant entrepreneur bought it for $800, showing that these diners could become big business.

From 1917-52, the Jerry O'Mahony Diner Company manufactured about 2,000 of the long, narrow, mostly metal buildings people associate with the restaurant. Examples include the Summit Diner and Miss America in Jersey City. They even created The Excellent Diner, which operated from 1947-95 in Westfield before it shipped to Germany — it currently operates in Disneyland Paris a Café des Cascadeurs — Café of the Stuntmen.

The company helped the diner industry emerge in the Northeast. Although the diner-manufacturing industry took a hit during the Great Depression, they still got by, providing a less expensive way of getting into the restaurant business because of less expensive food than formal eateries.

After World War II, the economy re-emerged, and the suburbs boomed. Diners became an attractive small-business opportunity in the suburbs. Then the industry saw greater expansion when the United States implemented the Interstate Highway System in the 1960s, becoming a hub for travelers to stop for a meal.

By the 1970s, fast food superseded diners in most of the United States. But diners remained common from New England to Delaware — especially in New Jersey.

While much of the country is missing out, more than 500 diners stand in New Jersey. And many of them are the stuff of legends: Tops Diner in Newark, Tick Tock Diner in Clifton, The Ritz Diner in Livingston, Mark Twain Diner in Union. Surely, we missed some, but we'd like to hear from you.

What's your favorite diner in New Jersey, and what's their best menu item?