Doesn't it seem ridiculous that in "Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory," Charlie's family was so poor that a loaf of bread was a luxury and the four grandparents shared one bed, but somehow they had a television?

Maybe it's just me.

I have been told I'm a good writer. That's very nice and perhaps I am, depending on the day and the topic. But then you read things like this and realize you are far from being a great writer. When you can hold someone's interest for 4,583 words, you have talent.

And yes, I just complimented a piece of writing from the Evil Empire that did not come from my literary girl-crush, Le Anne. The world may indeed be ending.

Speaking of the published word, I was fired up to see the cover of the most recent NJ Monthly Magazine as I checked out at the grocery store the other day. Advertised as "The Diner Issue," I eagerly grabbed it and added it to my purchases.

Things started well, with the editor's letter offering the following introduction...

Barry Levinson's 1982 film, Diner, proves that the acclaimed director and Baltimore devotee deserves to be an honorary New Jerseyan. His homage to his youth starred a bunch of quasi-unknown actors, including Kevin Bacon, Paul Reiser, Mickey Rourke, and Daniel Stern. But make no mistake - the diner stole the show. That's a concept we in the Garden State and perfectly comfortable with.

Given this, I ask you ... how in the name of all that is holy is it never mentioned that "Diner" is filmed at the Bendix?

I mean, they did a sidebar about movie-making in Jersey diners, and mentioned the Bendix but in reference to the movie "Jersey Girl. And not the Kevin Smith "Jersey Girl" (scenes from which were filmed at the New Berlin Diner and Sandman, make a note that we have to go there), but the Jami Gertz version from 1992 (the hair ... oh, the shame).

Overall, it's a solid issue. But that sort of negligence is difficult to overlook.















A list of my favorite diners would require a good deal of thought. But a preliminary top five would be:

-Bendix Diner, Hasbrouck Heights
-Time to Eat Diner, Bridgewater
-Phoenix Diner, Absecon
-Somerset Diner
-Princess Maria Diner, Wall

A special mention of the Wildwood Diner should also be made. It was an absolute beauty and probably where my love of diners began, as we visited the establishment on Atlantic Avenue many times during my childhood. But sadly, it served its last meal in 2005 and was demolished a year later.














A travesty.

As for my top-five menu items:

-Cheese fries
-Grilled cheese
-Pork roll and cheese
-French toast
-Rice pudding

I could talk about diners all night, but I really have to get packing as I'm due to fly to California in the morning.