There’s an old adage amongst physicians that goes, “Johnny Cash and Elvis Presley in the morning will cure whatever ails you.”
As far as The Blue Plate Diner is concerned, truer words were never spoken.
Just grab some dark sunglasses and slip into your flip-flops. No need to be formal here. Look for the enormous blue arrow in the sky near the corner of 2100 East and 2100 South. This arrow will conveniently direct you to the front door of the Blue Plate Diner. Kind humans will seat you at your choice of bar, table or booth, and you will be immediately dosed with comforting black coffee.
No, your tender brain is not deceiving you, those Elvis paintings on the wall do look like they are melting, and yes, almost all of the interior dcor is Elvis related. Elvis’ soothing, velvety voice caresses your ears from the speakers above, and you begin to feel a little better. When The King isn’t crooning, you can expect The Man in Black to tell you some tall tales.
As far as the menu goes, the Huevos Rancheros are a delicious, albeit strange, breakfast-two fried eggs sit on top of two huge black bean pancakes, blanketed by bell peppers, onions and melted cheese.
For you hangover victims, any one of Blue Plate’s hearty omelets with homefries will soak up the remainder of the toxins still left in your stomach, as will the fruit-covered waffles and pancakes. Your coffee will seem bottomless, as your server tops it off before you get to that last questionable sip.
Still, the most well-known (for good reason) dish at The Plate is the house specialty Blue Benedict-a sizeable double helping of poached eggs sitting atop a quarter-inch thick slice of Canadian bacon, drizzled with delectable hollandaise sauce and served with a helping of home fries. Even if you’re not a traditional benedict fan, The Blue Plate’s special will do much to sway your leanings.
Excellent service is no big deal at Blue Plate; it’s just the norm. You will not have much luck getting a job as a server though, since the original staff which was hired on at Blue Plate’s opening in 2000 has stayed ever since-says something about the atmosphere, no?
However, the nostalgia does not end with Elvis and the veteran staff.
The booths patrons sit in came from the Olympic Club in Fillmore, and the soda fountain and bar were acquired from Salina Drug. How ironic to be nursing a hangover over a bar imported from Utah’s only legally dry town.
Not only good for the morning pick-me-up, Blue Plate also has great lunch and dinner. From homestyle favorites like chicken fried steak and liver and onions, to huge burgers like the blue cheese bacon burger, served with classic or (my recommendation) Cajun wedge fries.
In addition to great food, Blue Plate has amicable employees and a well-known presence in the Salt Lake diner circuit. So whether you are smiling like Elvis because you sustained a blow to the left side of your face last night, or just because Blue Plate’s ambiance wore off on you during your meal, one thing is for sure: Leave Blue Plate Diner and you’ll be leaving happy.