Shari's Diner - weird place

Posted by Picasa
I'll start with this disclaimer, because there is actually a risk that the proprietor of this restaurant will read this review:
The folks running Shari's Diner seem to be very nice.  I applaud their open efforts to support local religious groups and they seem to care about their clientele.  They are also very proud of the reviews they have gotten online. I will probably try to eat there again and see if I was just in a bad mood or something the first time I ate there, but for now, I wasn't blown away.

Shari's Diner is the third or fourth attempt to run a restaurant out of the shiny metal diner building near Lake Mead and Buffalo.  It's close to work, so I went there for lunch.  When you go in, you are bombarded by self promotion.  Handwritten reviews on the wall, internet articles, etc. all over.  The gist is, they think this place is great.

I found it to be "good."

First, the menu is large.  The food is a bit overpriced.  But, they give a solid effort.  Look at my burger:

This is a brie and apple burger with bacon.  The bun has been brushed with butter.  There was a substantial amount of brie in the middle and they didn't skimp on the bacon.  The apples tasted fresh.  But, altogether, it didn't "pop."  It was different, but not noteworthy.  I also got the fried green beans with a special sauce.  It tasted like a very thin honey mustard sauce.  That's it.  There really isn't much more to say.

I will probably go there at least one more time though, and here's why.
1. I may have gotten the wrong thing.
2. I want to see if this place really is the Twilight Zone.
It's location in (or near? I don't really know where it begins) Summerlin puts it in the heart of the old folks enclave.  I was the youngest person in the restaurant by at least 25 years.  Nothing against our elders, but there was a very weird vibe in the restaurant.  I felt like I had walked into someone's twisted attempt to preserve their youth.  At one point the owner was bragging about his food and told the people in the booth in front of me about the burger I had ordered.  The elderly woman turned around to ask me how it was, and I nearly screamed.  It looked like her eyes worked (they were looking at me before I spoke), but the haphazard application of makeup, and especially the very liberal definition of "lips" utilized when applying her lipstick, was shocking and eerie.  I expected Vincent Price to come out of the back with a ventriloquist dummy on his arm and tell me I could never leave.

But, maybe it was just an off day.  I'll let you know.


Comments