Can’t decide between breakfast and dinner? You won’t lose no matter what you try — Diamonds Diner owner Vinnie Eljezi sees to that.
Since September, diners can feast on house specialties including a hashstack — an enticing, hot heap of hash browns, sausage, egg, and cheese — and the homestyle cinnamon slammer, a sausage, egg, and cheese breakfast sandwich on cinnamon swirl bread.
Popular lunch and dinner choices include spaghetti, chicken tenders, and Eljezi’s pork tenderloin, which he says holds its own with others in town. And this being Evansville, “fish is a big seller on Fridays, obviously,” General Manager Bonnie Madison says. Daily, made-from-scratch soup specials are hits too, including chicken and dumplings.
Eljezi, an Albanian native, loves to cook and followed in his father’s and brother’s footsteps by opening his first restaurant in Carlinville, Illinois, before moving to Evansville. The American menu comes naturally to Eljezi, “but we try to sprinkle in a sense of Albania, with the large servings we provide, for a family setting. In Albania, they have large family gatherings, and their dinner spreads are massive, and the food is never-ending.”
The location at 315 E. Diamond Ave. has a rich history: It’s the former home of Burger Barn and, later, Charlie’s Mongolian Barbecue. Diamonds Diner has its own branded hot sauce on every table, embracing the old-time diner feel. Eljezi’s and Madison’s philosophy is to give diners what they like. “It’s a big menu,” Eljezi says, “but everything is connected to traditional American food.” “Home cooking,” Madison adds.
