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Old Tastee Diner bids temporary farewell
by Theodore Kim
Gazette Staff Writer
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June 14, 2000
Classic façade moves to new Cameron Street site Saturday
Eugene Johnson, 60, is sipping black coffee late last week in a corner
booth at the Tastee Diner, a fixture of downtown Silver Spring for half a
century.
He likes the diner's French toast, but only if it's made with dark Rye
bread.
And no maple syrup, please. Strawberry jam will do just fine for him.
Johnson has been eating at the diner since 1968, when The Beatles were
still churning out records and the Watergate was nothing more than a fancy
hotel by the Potomac.
He recalls how the Tastee looked three decades ago, when the towering
hedges outside were short and a small barbershop sat across the street.
It's now a tall office building.
And he remembers his first time at the diner.
"I came here late one night after work," Johnson said. "And I've been
coming ever since."
Before the region's development, decline and, subsequent, redevelopment.
Before Metrorail was built, and the Intercounty Connector wasn't built.
Before it all, there was the Tastee Diner. Situated on Georgia Avenue, in
the midst of Silver Spring.
Now, however, the old location is no more.
The diner closed Monday morning after serving meals for more than 50
years.
This Saturday, workers will salvage the Tastee's art-deco façade and front
dining car and move them to a new location on Cameron Street, several
blocks away. The remaining structure will be demolished.
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