Roscoe Diner - Roscoe, NY

Posted By Michael Stern on April 12, 2008 11:33 AM

Any angler who has fished the Beaverkill River during the last three decades likely knows all about the Roscoe Diner. In fact, a large portion of the people who have traveled Route 17 into upstate New York know about this obligatory Sullivan County roadside landmark, which is the sort of place politicians stop when on the stump to show that they, too, like to eat elbow-to-elbow with ordinary folk. The Roscoe has remodeled several times over the years, and current décor is a rather peculiar motif of college pennants, but it remains what it has always been: a roadside diner that serves square meals, fast and cheap.

Like so many large-scale, modern diners, the Roscoe aims to be all things to all people, and features a vast, multicultural menu that provides a mealtime’s worth of reading. Here are literally dozens of broiled steaks and shops, seafood that is fried, stuffed, poached, broiled, and sautéed, Italian fare from Alfredo to Ziti, Greek souvlaki, Jewish blintzes, French toast, Mexican salads, and “diet delights.” The selection of pastries is huge and, in our experience, better-looking than tasting; but we have never regretted ordering rice pudding for dessert.

The meal that can’t fail at the Roscoe is breakfast. Breakfast is what a place like this does best; its repertoire includes some two dozen omelets, including all the usual meat, cheese, and vegetable fillings, plus omelets made from all egg whites or Egg Beaters. Ordinary eggs come with ham or Taylor ham, bacon or Canadian bacon, sausage or corned beef hash; extraordinary egg dishes include lox (smoked salmon) and eggs and pastrami and eggs.

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Posted By Lehi on March 11, 2011 8:13 PM

I can't believe this place got a bad review! I thought the food was fresh and delicious, and the staff was more than friendly. I guess you just can't please everybody. Even the coffee was fresh and it was 3:00pm! I will definitely eat here again.

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Posted By Cheryl DeDecker on January 27, 2010 9:36 PM

My husband and I stopped in here for lunch on a cold day of geocaching in the area. The diner was recommended by a friend and I was skeptical after reading previous reviews. We concur that the overall service we experienced lacked friendliness. We did find one very nice waitress, but unfortunately she did not serve our area.

The food was basic diner fare but my burger was cooked perfectly medium-well as I requested (from my experience, this is no small feat). My husband ordered the "Happy Waitress" (kind of ironic, really) which was a grilled cheese with bacon. He also had beef barley soup. He found the soup to be quite good, but the bacon in his sandwich came back "wimbly" despite asking for it to be crisp. When he told the waitress about it, she said, "Oh."

If in the area again I am likely to try a different restaurant.

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Burger and Fries

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Posted By Mr. David Robbins on August 23, 2008 1:11 PM

I should have turned around and left the Roscoe Diner as soon as I walked in the door. The front entranceway smelled like a urinal. The hostess was a real treat; she had the demeanor of a rattlesnake. If she smiled her face would crack.

The waitress took several minutes to bring our drinks, two glasses of water and a decaf coffee. After looking over the menu and waiting some time for the waitress to come back we ordered. My wife asked for French onion soup and a tossed salad with Italian dressing. I ordered a tossed salad with French dressing and spaghetti and meatballs. Simple right? Nope! We waited a long time. I wondered why it took so long for our salad to arrive. Finally it arrived along with my entree and my wife's soup. It was the wrong soup. The waitress stated she tried to do it by memory. Must be they don't allow them pens and checks. My wife's dressing wasn't Italian, but balsamic vinaigrette. When asked about it the waitress was clueless as to what kind it really was. After another long wait my wife got the right soup.

The spaghetti had about a tablespoon of sauce. Plus it was cold. The meatballs were cold and tasteless. The rolls were hard and dry. I ate very little. When the check finally arrived after another long wait, we went to the cashier to pay. She was an utter joy. She was rude and extremely unprofessional. I left thinking what a mistake we made.

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