Food: 25 Years Young

They are the stuff that food legends are made of. The culinary rocket fuel of our busy roadways. The classic Jersey diner. More necessary than ever. 

The Jefferson Diner (www.jeffersondiner.com) sits in a shopping center island in between heavily trafficked Route 15 north, and Route 15 south, in what is technically Lake Hopatcong. From the northbound side, it is not as visible and you must carefully follow the signs.  

But this big, bright, shiny building, chromed like a giant Cadillac, embraces your  appetite with a display of sky high pastries,  a menu of bonus-sized servings and hospitable, friendly hosts. Families are welcome here, so are the real early birds; at 8 am on a recent Sunday morning, the parking lot was filling up fast.

Nearly 25 years ago, Donna Seretis–who loved to cook, and her husband Peter, founded the diner in the rural woods. It was scarily “out of civilization,” she says.

Life was not easy, the business was tough and the diner struggled.  With their money nearly exhausted, the family bought a 100 dollar raffle ticket from a local Greek Orthodox priest. And as if it were destiny, they won $25,000, which was enough to fund much needed renovations and keep the place afloat.

Years later, the restaurant wins readers choice awards consistently as one of the state’s top diners. Brothers Nicky and Jimmy run the business, Donna still meeting and greeting diners, describing her cooking style (“a little of this, a little of that”), and cheerfully bossing her now-grown-up sons.

In the bleak economy, the homey diner’s light shines brightly. Nicky says business is actually better because the food is good, cheap, and plentiful.

Jefferson will be celebrating its quarter century at a time when other restaurants are closing their doors. The luck of that lottery ticket is still strong for this family-owned classic, a pit stop of comfort food and conversation.

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