The Armview

Across the road from our house (well, across the Rotary, to be precise) is the Armview Restaurant and Lounge.

It's what would now be termed a diner, and has been in business since at least the 1950s. And up until a month or two ago, it looked every bit its age - with a faded old sign out front, and an interior that last saw decoration in the 1970s, by the looks of things. Needless to say, we'd never eaten there, and had no plans to do so.

Just after Christmas, I was passing one day and noticed all the windows papered over. I figured they'd gone out of business at long last, but no - a small sign on the door announced they were temporarily closed for renovation. Well, a few weeks ago they re-opened, and I was astonished to see it had become something of a model of retro chic. So this morning (it being a holiday and all), A. and I decided to pop over for breakfast and check it out.

The re-designed interior is really very nice. It's gone from tired and dated to retro-fabulous. The've kept all the original booths, counter, panelling and vinyl flooring, and added new upholstery, light fittings and blinds, and a fresh lick of paint. One wall has even been done up with a display of old photos of the restaurant, old menus, vintage food packaging and advertising, etc. On the other side of the restaurant is the 'lounge' part, with an original Sixties bar and lots of small tables (and indeed, the original sign out front advertises cocktails). At the very back (before you go thinking the place is a bit too shiny and cool) there's a little room with the obligatory VLTs. Heh.

But on to the most important bit - the food. Perfectly nice and very cheap. The coffee is good, and comes in a bottomless cup. Their basic bacon'n'eggs breakfast costs a paltry $4. I had the pancakes, which were fluffy and tasty, also at $4. A. of course had the mega-breakfast, with three eggs, a pile of bacon, ham and sausages, toast, potatoes, etc. and that cost $7.

I'll need to go back again someday at lunchtime and check out the specials. But in the interim, I think we'll be rolling out of bed some Sundays, grabbing the newspapers, and going over the road for the morning, to linger over breakfast at the Armview. I have a feeling it may only be a matter of time before some hack from The Coast shows up, re-christens it as a mecca of vintage coolness, and sparks a small stampede of downtown hipsters who will displace the locals and regulars.