The Aramingo Diner Is Closing [UPDATED]

UPDATE 3/31: The Aramingo Diner has closed.

ORIGINAL:

From the Department of Say It Ain’t So comes news that the Aramingo Diner is closing. One employee told me early on Tuesday, “We may be closing.” And now a manager confirms that the end is near for the storied Port Richmond diner, which originally opened its doors in 1957.

“Not enough people understand good food,” says manager Kathleen (she declined to provide her last name) of the impending Aramingo Diner closing. “They want Applebee’s. They want Kentucky Fried Chicken.”

Kathleen, who has worked at the diner for 37 years, says that an exact date has not been set, but that the diner will not be closing this Friday, March 21st, as was rumored on Fishtown.us. “Before I worked here, I was coming here as a kid,” she remembers. “But like they say, all good things must come to an end.”

I asked Kathleen if the diner might reopen under new ownership. “No,” she replied. “That’s not going to happen. We live in a depressed area. People around here just want the cheapest food, and they don’t care if it is any good.”

In 1957, William and Catherine Moraitis opened the Aramingo Diner. They sold the diner to their son-in-law, George Grigos, in 1981. The diner is best known for its cheesecake.

In 2006, a man was shot to death inside, and later that year, the Aramingo Diner closed temporarily after a fire. One year later, City Council recognized the diner with a proclamation honoring its 50th anniversary.