# This never made sense to me when eating breakfast at a diner **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [September 24, 2016, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-never-made-sense-to-me-when-eating-breakfast-at-a-diner/766755 "2016-09-24T19:42:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Mister\_Rik](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mister_rik/32/491_2.png) [@Mister\_Rik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mister_Rik)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2016, 12:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-never-made-sense-to-me-when-eating-breakfast-at-a-diner/766755/61 "2016-10-01T00:08:28Z")
> [@Whiskey\_Dickens](#): > > I’ve seen the mildewy rags that get used to wipe tables in diners. I wouldn’t be shocked if you told me some diners use the floor mop on the tables after closing time. The janitor/helper at the local greasy spoon is a cousin by marriage, he might be the laziest guy I know. Believe it or not, “diners” are held to the same health standards as any other restaurant. That “mildewy rag” is not “mildewy”. It’s kept in a bucket of water, to which has been added chlorine bleach or another sanitizing chemical. > [@TBG](#): > > What do you think they’re doing to clean the plates and silverware in such places? :eek: There’s this fancy new thing called a “dishwashing machine” that _gasp_ _cleans and sterilizes the dishes_! ---
**Author:** ![SanVito](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sanvito/32/2805_2.png) [@SanVito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanVito)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2016, 9:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-never-made-sense-to-me-when-eating-breakfast-at-a-diner/766755/62 "2016-10-03T09:24:34Z")
> [@Doug\_K](#): > > Toast should only be slightly crispy on the outside, but should still be warm and soft with the butter melted in. Ideally it should be buttered and the first bite taken within 15-30 seconds of the toaster popping. Failing that, both slices should be buttered and stacked buttered sides together ASAP to maintain warmth and softness as long as possible. > > If you insist on having your toast overly crispy, that’s a function of how long it’s toasted, not putting it on a rack to get stale and cold. If it gets soggy from being stacked, either there’s something horribly wrong with your bread or you’ve put on watery butter. You speak as if there’s some World Toast Authority that sets down rules. Clearly habits and preferences vary wildly on this subject. I’m actually no fan of stacking toast in a toast rack for all the reasons suggested, but obviously some people prefer it crispy or toast racks wouldn’t exist! ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2016, 9:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-never-made-sense-to-me-when-eating-breakfast-at-a-diner/766755/63 "2016-10-03T09:33:43Z")
> [@Mister\_Rik](#): > > Judging by the photo of the toast in a rack, it appears it is also served dry, and you have to butter it yourself? I like to butter my toast while it’s still hot so that the butter, ya know, melts. And if I buttered it and then put it in a rack, all the butter would run off … It is hot when it gets to the table, and I’ve never gone to butter it and had the toast be so cold that the butter didn’t melt. How long does it take you to eat breakfast? Oh wait… do you start with butter from the fridge? In the UK I’ve mostly encountered it cool but not freezing. ---
**Author:** ![Doug\_K](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b5ac83/32.png) [@Doug\_K](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doug_K)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2016, 11:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-never-made-sense-to-me-when-eating-breakfast-at-a-diner/766755/64 "2016-10-03T11:32:06Z")
> [@SanVito](#): > > You speak as if there’s some World Toast Authority that sets down rules. Clearly habits and preferences vary wildly on this subject. I’m actually no fan of stacking toast in a toast rack for all the reasons suggested, but obviously some people prefer it crispy or toast racks wouldn’t exist! But again, crispiness is determined by how long it was toasted. The rack does absolutely bupkis toward that end. It only serves to make it cold faster. ---
**Author:** ![BundleOfStix](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ed8c4c/32.png) [@BundleOfStix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BundleOfStix)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2016, 11:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-never-made-sense-to-me-when-eating-breakfast-at-a-diner/766755/65 "2016-10-03T23:02:06Z")
'Murican here, and I love cold toast with cold butter. I would also love to have a toast rack, but have not yet been able to find an affordable one in my recent trips to London. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk ---
**Author:** ![BwanaBob](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bwanabob/32/2985_2.png) [@BwanaBob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BwanaBob)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2016, 2:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-never-made-sense-to-me-when-eating-breakfast-at-a-diner/766755/66 "2016-10-04T14:57:17Z")
Bizarre. Every diner I’ve ever been to (CA, NY, NJ, MD) served the toast on a side plate, ---
**Author:** ![Kimballkid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/b5a626/32.png) [@Kimballkid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimballkid)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2016, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-never-made-sense-to-me-when-eating-breakfast-at-a-diner/766755/67 "2016-10-04T19:42:20Z")
> [@BundleOfStix](#): > > I would also love to have a toast rack, but have not yet been able to find an affordable one in my recent trips to London. [Why](https://www.amazon.com/Supreme-Housewares-Stainless-Steel-Toast/dp/B000LWVJHA) go all the way to London. ---
**Author:** ![Mister\_Rik](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mister_rik/32/491_2.png) [@Mister\_Rik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mister_Rik)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2016, 11:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-never-made-sense-to-me-when-eating-breakfast-at-a-diner/766755/68 "2016-10-04T23:04:55Z")
> [@Nava](#): > > It is hot when it gets to the table, and I’ve never gone to butter it and had the toast be so cold that the butter didn’t melt. How long does it take you to eat breakfast? Oh wait… do you start with butter from the fridge? In the UK I’ve mostly encountered it cool but not freezing. Well, I cook for a living, and have cooked in diners (as well as cooked breakfast in other types of restaurants) and so I typically butter the toast as soon as it pops out of the toaster, and do the same at home. Preferably with room-temperature butter or margarine. ---
**Author:** ![BundleOfStix](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ed8c4c/32.png) [@BundleOfStix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BundleOfStix)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2016, 4:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-never-made-sense-to-me-when-eating-breakfast-at-a-diner/766755/69 "2016-10-06T04:38:35Z")
The thrill of the hunt, of course Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk ---
**Author:** ![TBG](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c89c15/32.png) [@TBG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TBG)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2016, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-never-made-sense-to-me-when-eating-breakfast-at-a-diner/766755/70 "2016-10-07T20:29:01Z")
> [@Mister\_Rik](#): > > There’s this fancy new thing called a “dishwashing machine” that _gasp_ _cleans and sterilizes the dishes_! And you think they’re actually using such a thing when they have a perfectly good bucket and rag? :rolleyes: [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-never-made-sense-to-me-when-eating-breakfast-at-a-diner/766755.md?page=3)