Take Louie's in Buffalo, for instance. Louie's was my first love as far as greasy spoons go, and there really isn't anywhere else like it. I would have to say it is the grossest place I have ever patronized. The windows are slightly glossy with grease. Some of the booths have ripped cushions (there I draw the line. I hate sitting on seats with torn cushions. I got enough of that in elementary school to last me the rest of my life.), and everything on the menu is fried or grilled, save for the beverages. But I love it. I used to go there about once every two weeks or so in the winter of my junior year. After a rough voice lesson, faced with the prospect of trudging the twelve blocks home in the snow, I would go to Louie's for a veggie burger first. It warmed me just enough to get home. I sat at the counter and complimented the burger--which was actually really good-- and the man at the register would say, "Say thank you, boys!" Then the people manning the grill would mumble their thanks. In the summer, I would get milkshakes, which were so thick you could just barely suck them up with a straw, but secretly, I loved those nasty winter days when I'd sit by the grill for extra warmth.
There's no equal to Louie's, of course (health inspectors are probably thankful for that), but I've found another love in Northampton. Kathy's Diner is a diner in a trailer that's open from 11 to 3 on Fridays, with very cheap and surprisingly good food. Alice and I go there for Milkshakes at Midnight, an informal event in which one shares a milkshake with another after a bad week. We went with Steve and Erika once, but most of the time it's just the two of us, sitting in a drafty booth and sipping milkshakes. After the Five College Faculty Dance Department show a few weeks ago, we went there just before it began to snow. I had pancakes, she had an omelette, and the two of us sat in the warm diner, sheltered from the chilly winds outside.
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