The Plaid Pladd

Elmo’s Diner is, hands down, my favorite restaurant. I know it’s nothing fancy or really all that special, but if Steven asks me where I want to go to eat, the only reason I might not say Elmo’s is that we went there yesterday. Not that I could ever get sick of Elmo’s–I just don’t want the waiters to think I’m stalking them. If you visit us from out of town, chances are we will be taking you to Elmo’s. Example:

THE 434 Elmo's reunion! Plus Steven.

The first point in its favor is that it’s super close to my house and has a good sized parking lot, since it’s part of Carr Mill Mall. Unlike real malls, Carr Mill is actually an old timey cotton mill from 1898! Now filled with fancy hipster stores, the fanciest Rita’s I have ever been in, and Elmo’s Diner!

Lucky there is nothing too fancy about Elmo

You can see inside where some old windows have been bricked over, and the green booths sometimes make me feel like I’m in a train.

A pre-haircut Steven, shy about having his picture taken in his natural environment

The second best thing about Elmo’s is its massive variety of food! The menu itself is large, and you can get breakfast any time! This is great news for me, since I pretty much only want to eat breakfast food after 3pm, and Steven hates eggs. Anywhere I can eat an omelette for dinner is a good place in my heart. Also, they have new breakfast and lunch/dinner specials every day, AND a bewildering list of “[Insert Food Category] of the day”. For a blurry example:

Yes, Cobbler and Dessert are two separate categories. I know, it's genius.

That’s right, every day there is a different Hot Soup, Cold Soup, Salad, Veggie, Quiche, Enchilada, Cobbler, and Dessert. THIS is why I could go to Elmo’s every day and not get sick of it. It is always different! Case in point:

Steven politely set aside his voracious hunger while I photographed our meal

I’m a big fan of Elmo’s sandwiches. There’s lots of different kinds, but they come with crinkly fries OR applesauce! I almost always choose applesauce for the joy of its randomness. And because it makes me feel like I’m eating lunch in the middle school cafeteria, except nothing smells like despair. This particular sandwich was a special that day; it was delicious turkey and avocado! Observe:

Glorious!

Steven chose one of the dinner specials, Shepard’s pie with ground turkey. Most of the dinners come with 1+ sides (also a bewildering variety of choices) and a bread choice. There is no wrong bread choice! I usually go for the biscuit, but this time Steven chose cornbread. No shame in that.

His side was salad, which is like the least exciting choice, sorry

Elmo’s also does a mean milkshake, and gives you the extra in the metal cup thing like any really classy milkshake place should. Since today was a special photo session, we opted out of milkshakes so we could order dessert!

If this doesn't fill you with joy, you're either lactose intolerant or dead inside. Multi-colored sprinkles!!!!

Come visit me and we can go to Elmo’s together!! You haven’t lived until you’ve ordered the hot and cold soup of the day in one order or seriously discussed with a waiter the exact degree of chocolateyness you want in your chocolate milk (70% chocolateyness, 100% tastiness always).

Elmo’s, if you’re reading, you can repay me in milkshakes and Greek Grilled Cheese Sandwiches. With applesauce.