1. THE POST WWW.THEPOSTATHENS.COM 3THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 20, 2014
Post Modern
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It’s Wednesday evening. Gerard
Dunn shuffles into Union Street
Diner and sits at the table directly
across from the kitchen and cashier
stand. In less than a minute, a pitch-
er of Diet Pepsi and a glass is placed
in front of him, prepped for his long
stay.
It’s the same scene that has hap-
pened seven times a week for the
past 16 years.
Dunn has been a regular at Union
Street Diner, 70 W. Union St., ever
since it first opened its doors in
1997, initially in the building that
now houses Thai Paradise, 102 W.
Union St.
“They give me the red carpet
treatment, I must say,” Dunn said.
It’s a convenient spot for Dunn,
an Athens resident, who only lives
about 150 feet down the road. It’s
also a convenient spot for the drunk-
en wanderers who seek nourishment
and hydration after the bars close.
It’s the only 24-hour restaurant in
Athens.
“For me, it’s part of the cultural
fabric without a doubt,” said David
Vazquez, a senior studying theater
performance who said he has a sin-
ful addiction to the bacon cheese
fries, about $6.
RETURNING TO ITS
ORIGINAL GLORY
But USD wasn’t always so popular.
Joy Darnell has worked at USD
since it opened and remembers
customers being dissatisfied with
the inconsistency that occurred
when Dee Forsyth owned it.
“It was very difficult because
a lot of customers would come to
eat, and the restaurant would be
closed, so they would get angry
and not come back,” Darnell said.
Jay Shapiro has co-owned USD
since 2011 after purchasing it from
the Forsyth family, the original
owners. He previously owned D.P.
Dough for more than a decade be-
fore deciding to revamp what he
considered a downward spiraling
diner.
“I’d been coming as a custom-
er for years, and they had just
stopped being open 24 hours a
day even though the sign still said
it,” said Shapiro, who is originally
from the Boston area. “I saw it get-
ting slower and saw an opportu-
nity to go in there, take over and
bring it back to 24 hours a day.”
Shapiro purchased all new
kitchen equipment, totaling about
$100,000. During that first year,
Shapiro said he would often pull
21-hour shifts and recharge by tak-
ing 2-hour naps.
In 2007, USD moved to its cur-
rent location.
Shapiro said since he has owned
the diner, sales have increased 300
percent, which he said is due to his
“anal-retentiveness” with service.
“I want it to be perfect,” he said.
“People order food because they’re
hungry, not because they want to
sit and wait for an hour.”
WORKING DAY & NIGHT
The “fantastic” service is what
made a first visit to the restaurant
memorable for Chris Reinbold, a
sophomore studying recording in-
dustry, who went to dinner there
with his girlfriend, Courtney Yeager
on Nov. 5.
The waiter? Popular USD server
Tim Buck, who has worked at the
diner for about two years.
“He was an exuberant fellow,”
Reinbold said. “It was just really im-
pressive.”
Buck said he is flattered by his
popularity at the diner, laughing
it off as something that just comes
from his fun and easy-to-say name.
Shapiro said people frequently re-
quest Buck as their server.
Buck said people just shout his
name and chant “Tim Buck needs a
raise.” He said he’s even been called
“Wizard Tim” because of how fast
he brought out the food. One time,
he said USD staff members had to
actually ask a group to stop yelling
his name.
Buck now works the second shift
— 3 p.m. to 11 p.m. — but prefers
to do the third shift — 11 p.m. to 7
a.m. — because of its more laid back
atmosphere where it feels more like
he’s “hanging out” with people in-
stead of just being their waiter.
“I’ve met a lot of people on that
shift,” said Buck, 24. “We just talk
at 4 a.m. when there isn’t anything
else to do. … A lot of walks of life are
awake at that time.”
The third shift often deals with
the drunken crowd, but Buck said
he doesn’t mind. In fact, he said it’s a
challenge that allows him to be more
personable with the customers.
Darnell, 56, used to work the first
shift, from about 6:30 a.m. to 2 p.m.,
for more than 15 years, but when she
had to temporarily work the third
shift, she said she loved it and de-
cided to stay on it.
“The people are polite and nice.
You wouldn’t think so on a midnight
shift, but they are,” she said. “You
have your share of rowdy ones, but
for the most part, it’s an easy shift
… It’s a lot of fun to watch everyone
else be drunk.”
But not all of the servers have
the same sentiment. Deb Six started
working at USD in January after
having worked at Court Street Diner
for nine years. She said it took her
three days to recover from staying
up all night working the third shift.
“It isn’t for me,” said Six, a single
mom of two who has waitressed for
13 years. “It’s for people like (Tim
Buck) who’ve got the high energy.”
USD typically has a positive at-
mosphere despite the time of night,
Buck said.
Once, someone borrowed his gui-
tar to play “Wagon Wheel,” and Buck
said those in the restaurant joined in
on the chorus and refused to let the
player perform anything else.
Vomit is also sometimes an issue.
Buck said a lot of the times, people
just get sick right on their plates.
“They’re really apologetic, but
honestly, I’m just like ‘Good aim.’”
he joked.
GOOD FOR THE WALLET
AND THE STOMACH
Catering to the drunken crowd
is not the diner’s busiest hours. In-
stead, Saturday and Sunday from 9
a.m. to 3 p.m. is the most hectic time
of the week, Shapiro said.
His standards require that no-
body waits more than 20 minutes,
though it can be longer during spe-
cial weekends such as Moms Week-
end last year when he said he had
more than 100 people waiting.
Six said she has enjoyed working
at USD because of the food’s high
quality for an inexpensive price. She
said the food is the same price or less
for fast food but instead customers
get dressed up pancakes, fresh fruit
and, until the West Union Street fire,
Jackie O’s Pub & Brewery bread.
Breakfast is served 24/7 at USD
and accounts for a large portion of
its sales.
Vazquez’s suggestions:
Tilapia: $8.99
Union Club sandwich:
$9.99
“Few places can make a better
plate than USD,” he said.
WHERE EVERYBODY
KNOWS YOUR NAME
As a late night venue in town close
to campus, USD has garnered a strong
population of regular customers.
Caylin Pugh, a senior studying
classical civilization, used to fre-
quent the diner every weekend for
more than a year when her friend
worked as a server.
Pugh said she and her group of
friends loved having USD as a space
to congregate and hang out for sev-
eral hours, be it on their computers
or playing board games.
As an Athens native, Pugh said
USD is part of her childhood. Buck,
also from Athens, agreed.
“Everyone around here knows
Union Street Diner,” Buck said. “I
feel like everyone has gone into USD
in the middle of the night at some
point because it’s open. … It’s there
for everyone.”
Tyler Buchanan did not go to Ohio
University, but even as just a visi-
tor, he frequented the diner. When
he moved to Athens one month af-
ter graduating from Bowling Green
State University, he started coming
four to six times per week.
Each time, he has his own pot of
coffee and a mug while he works on
his computer in the corner booth by
the window in the upstairs section
of the diner. Buchanan, a reporter
for the Vinton County Courier, said
he likes that spot because he can see
the constant flow of people.
“It doesn’t necessarily have to
be a bar to have that awesome, fun,
public, crazy experience,” he said.
“This is my place. As long as it’s 24
hours and as long as it’s open, I’ll al-
ways be coming back.”
BELOVED UNION STREET DINER MAKES A NAME FOR ITSELF IN THE
HEARTS AND STOMACHS OF OU STUDENTS AND ATHENS RESIDENTS
ALWAYS OPEN
MERYL GOTTLIEB
STAFF WRITER
PHOTOS BY KAITLIN OWENS | STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
The Union Street Diner logo casts a shadow inside the restaurant located at 70 W. Union St. The 24/7 diner has been a staple on Union Street for 16 years.
John McGee melts cheese on top of a dish with a blow torch in the kitchen of Union Street Diner, located at 70
W. Union St. USD is characterized by it’s high quality dishes for low prices and speedy service.
FOOD BY THE NUMBERS
Charting the amount of food Union Street Diner kicks out during a
regular weekend versus an OU special weekend.
The numbers reflect the amounts individually made, not the number of completed
orders. The eggs section includes only individual eggs cooked, not recipies that
include eggs (such as french toast). Coffee is listed by cups sold, not including refills.
@BUZZLIGHTMERYL
MG986611@OHIO.EDU
2,586
390
451
178
480
1,159
155
60
127
610
49
30
34
1,761
377
405
151
592
935
155
52
111
458
25
22
28
EGGS
PANCAKES
FRENCH TOAST
BURGERS
MAC AND CHEESE BITES
BACON
MOZZARELLA STICKS
DEEP-FRIED OREOS
MILKSHAKES
COFFEE
BLT
PHILLY CHEESESTEAK
CHICKEN TENDER DINNER
FRIDAY, NOV. 7 — SUNDAY,
NOV. 9 (DADS WEEKEND)
FRIDAY, OCT. 31 —
SUNDAY, NOV. 2