Christmas Eve Morning – Mark’s Downtown Diner

Laurie and I hadn’t eaten at Mark’s Diner in Loudon Tennessee for over a year and a half.  We hadn’t enjoyed our last meal…a breakfast…all that well so we’d moved on to other restaurants.  As I’ve previously mentioned, we’ve had a bit of a struggle finding a good basic breakfast here in East Tennessee.  Of course, coming from Chicago with a breakfast restaurant every other mile down the street, it’s tough to compare! 

This is Mark’s Diner in downtown Loudon Tennessee.  It’s a great location and it has a look to it…along with a mercantile/gift shop and the best ice cream shop, (http://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurant_Review-g55167-d834598-Reviews-Tic_TOC_Ice_Cream_Parlor-Loudon_Tennessee.html),  in East Tennessee as next door neighbors.

After we took our Dawn Marie to the airport for a Christmas Eve morning flight to visit her brother in Detroit, Laurie and I decided to give Mark’s another try for breakfast.  The place was packed at 7:00 AM when it opened… It turned out that this crowd had gathered for breakfast…to fuel up…for an important mission.  They were almost all volunteers who were gearing up to hand out Christmas food baskets for those in need!

By 7:15 AM, all of these booths were full as well.  Note the local touch with dozens of caricatures of local officials, business persons and regular customers on the walls.  Mark’s is definitely a popular local diner that’s in touch with the local populace…

So…with all of this build up, the fact is that we were here to check out the basic breakfast offerings…  Laurie had her usual favorite…eggs over easy, hash browns, bacon and toast. ($6.38) It did hit the spot…breakfast satisfaction was achieved!

I had my usual…the only difference from Laurie’s breakfast was that I usually prefer sausage patties vs. bacon. ($6.38) It was all good!  The eggs were done right, the toast was pre-buttered, the hashbrowns were actually browned properly and the sausage patties had a nice flavor.

OK…Mission accomplished!  Mark’s Downtown Diner served up a nice breakfast, one of the better ones that we’ve experienced in East Tennessee.   Service was prompt and only one waitress in the restaurant seemed a bit grumpy this early in the morning.

Mark’s Downtown Diner has some inconsistent winter hours.  The restauarnt is open from 7 AM to 3 PM Monday and Tuesday; from 7 AM to 7 PM Wednesday and Thursday; 7 AM to 8 PM on Friday; 7 AM to 3 PM on Saturday, and; 9 AM to 2 PM on Sundays.  Mark’s doesn’t serve breakfast after 11 AM.  There is a full menu of sandwich items after 11 AM as well as nightly specials Monday through Friday evenings.

Mark’s Downtown Diner is located at 502 Grove Street, (right off of US Highway 11), in Loudon Tennessee.  Phone: 865-458-2231.  Mark’s can be found on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Marks-Downtown-Diner/128749287154281.

Just click on any photo to enlarge it…

Thanks for stopping by for a visit!

Take Care, Big Daddy Dave