Tina’s Diner: A Bushwick Fixture Since 1969
Last week, The Onion ran an article with the headline: “Phantom Diner Appears Only To Those In Their Drunkest Hour.” For some in the neighborhood, the Bushwick version of such a place may be Tina’s Restaurant on Wilson and Flushing. Tina’s, which opens every day at 3:30 in the morning, often serves as the knockout punch in an all night bout of unhealthy consumption for locals from the nearby Morgantown lofts and beyond.
Tina’s is more than just a place to get drunken Friday night eats, however; it’s a neighborhood fixture that caters to just about every type in Bushwick. Go there at any time and you will see an eclectic mix of people — yes, hipsters, but also workers starting or ending their shifts, long time Bushwick residents, and policemen taking a coffee break.
Tina Skermo has been running the counter there since 1969. A resident of Long Island, she works seven days a week, open to close — 3:30 AM to 4:30 PM. I asked her if much had changed since ‘69. She replied that the neighborhood had experienced good and bad times but that “now is very good.” Indeed, the diner itself is a bit like a large time capsule. The wooden paneled walls are straight out of the Brady Bunch and faded family portraits featuring girls in perms stand on shelves behind the counter.
All of this adds to the experience of eating a meal there which — if you like diner food — is great. The menu at Tina’s is typical of any diner. They cook up a hell of a pancake which I usually complement with home fries and a delicious vanilla milkshake. My only beef is with the home fries, which taste a bit like they’ve been fried in bacon grease. I order them anyway because I love potatoes, but I usually top them with hot sauce. You can get lunch too — an assortment of hot and cold sandwiches, hamburgers, etc. Oh yeah, and it’s real cheap: an order of pancakes will set you back three dollars while you can nab breakfast and lunch specials for around five.
Tina’s Restaurant
1002 Flushing Ave. | 718-821-9595 (they deliver)
August 8th, 2008 at 10:58 am
Love this place. Even sober.
August 8th, 2008 at 11:12 am
The $3 pancakes are pretty much heaven on a very cheap plate. And ordering a large coffee to go is kind of like spending 20 minutes inside the body of a hummingbird. WOAAAH SUGAR!
August 8th, 2008 at 4:41 pm
I’m continually amazed how Tina stays standing. That woman works hard - incredibly hard.
August 24th, 2008 at 4:48 am
Hahaha I remember eattin there when I use 2 live on melrode bring back mad memories
August 24th, 2008 at 1:25 pm
tina is amazing!! She busts her ass every day to make sure we eat well!! Things get a little backed up in there sometimes so be patient and friendly, no sense getting all worked up. Besides for 5 bucks you can’t beat it anwhere!!
September 13th, 2008 at 4:57 pm
The place looked nice, so I went there to have lunch there today. In the middle of eating, I took a cigarette break, whereupon the proprietor rushed out, grabbed and forcefully pushed me into the restaurant to demand payment, ignoring my protests that I was returning after I had my cigarette. I don’t have bruises to prove that it was an assault, but he did threaten to “take me to the back room”, whatever that means. My review: a relaxing place if the proprietor remembers manners that his mother surely taught him at some point.
September 14th, 2008 at 1:59 pm
this is NYC zulfikar, what makes you think you can leave a restaurant without paying for any reason? if you’re eating at a table with others who don’t go out for a smoke that’s one thing; or at least let the owner know what you’re doing. even in that case, most restaurants would ask that you pay up before walking out the door, even if you say you’re coming back.
this isn’t Europe where you get to leave your baby in its pram outside the door of a restaurant. sheesh!
September 14th, 2008 at 3:17 pm
People actually need (or want) a cigarette break “in the middle of eating”? I think that’s the most embarrassing part Zulfikar’s story. Thank God I kicked that habit to the curb!
September 14th, 2008 at 5:23 pm
Lighten up Ric and Arm! (and there’s nothing worse than a self-righteous quitter). Also, pram reference–totally irrelevant.
September 14th, 2008 at 6:23 pm
a few years back, a european woman (danish maybe) left her baby in its carriage outside a restaurant here in NYC as she ate inside because apparently such things are done in northwestern europe as it’s such a safe, honest culture. so bone up on your cultural studies missy. my reference is quite apropos!
September 14th, 2008 at 9:11 pm
Heck, just so you know, I didn’t “quit” anything - I choose to enjoy plenty of vices, some of which may even be considered socially unacceptable. And any smoker (and most every smoker) can and does quit smoking so no big deal there (some do it quite often over their lifetime)! But FOR ME, any time my vices or habits (or drugs) start dictating my actions they stop becoming enjoyable so adios, no?
If the example given had taken place at a fine dining establishment during a multi-course dinner I’m sure I would have been more understanding. But at a DINER in the MIDDLE of eating (what’s that, 15 min max for diner meals?) the guy runs out for a smoke! Didn’t his mom teach HIM any manners?
September 14th, 2008 at 11:22 pm
Missy? wow, i haven’t been called that by anyone since my seventh grade math teacher!
I’m very familiar with the incident with the Danish woman and her American husband at the Dallas BBQ, as well as the many issues of cultural differences surrounding it, having lived extensively in both Europe and the US.
Stepping out for a smoke, whether before, during, or after a meal should not be a big deal..leaving a baby unattended on Second Avenue however, should be. How exactly the two are related is my question. And all I am saying is that I agree with Zulkifar that the guy overreacted. Sure, maybe he has been robbed before, maybe he’s just suspicious of people whose names begin with “Z”, but when you see your customer right out front with a cigarette dangling from his mouth, it’s pretty clear what’s going on. Not robbery. Not babies being left in prams.
September 15th, 2008 at 5:57 am
a cigarette, a baby.. nope, no discernible difference to me. LOL
I was just saying I’m not surprised at all that the proprietor was upset.
September 15th, 2008 at 9:15 am
Beware of smoking people whose names begin with “Z”!!!!!
But did this guy light up a baby or am I confused? (don’t really need an answer on that one)
September 15th, 2008 at 1:55 pm
BUT LAST WEEKEND…. IT WASN’T OPEN!