Coffee Shop Diners a thing of the past? Nah! Drive down US Route 40 or Route 66 through America, and youll see gleaming, stainless steel diners in almost every town and city. These restaurants may seem like a relic of a bygone era, but they almost always have cars outside and people inside.

How can it be possible that such places still hold a piece of the American Dream? No one really knows, but after almost 150 years, coffee shop diners are still a strong piece of Americana.

The classic coffee shop diner got its start back in 1858 when a man by the name of Walter Scott started selling sandwiches to people in Providence, Rhode Island. By the late 1800s, diner owners bought old, decommissioned street cars and turned them into diners, adding a counter, some stools and a kitchen.

Then came the 1950s, and diners were transformed into the form recognized today lots of stainless steel, large windows, and art deco dcor.

Over the past fifty years, diners have disappeared and changed hands many times over. Journalists have frequently extolled about the impending loss of the diner. But it never seemed to happen.

Instead, the diners keep going year after year, with new owners serving the same great customers and travelers who are just passing through.

Today, coffee shops and diners are located in towns and cities, airports and bus and train stations. Most offer a fairly large menu with a wide variety of standard American food--chicken, hamburgers, eggs, bacon, and pancakes.