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Steve’s Park Diner Gets a Facelift

photo by Mike Cameron Pictured above Waitstaff Debbie, Courtney and Mary

photo provided

Tuesday July 29, 2008

By Larry Johnson

    By the time Steve Dow bought the Park Diner from Corrado Salini in 1989, the Diner had already survived a long and distinguished career. Jack Swanson, a businessman from Lynn, Massachusetts brought the Diner to town in the mid-30s. It came to Middlebury by train and was unloaded from a flat-bed car by local building contractor Leonard Zeman.

    Once unloaded, the Diner crawled up Seymour Street on its wooden wheels, turned onto Main Street where it snarled traffic and slowly made its way to its first destination next to “Bud” Butterfield’s gas station, the precursor to Paul’s Mobil.

    Swanson named the new restaurant the Valdemar Diner, and it wasn’t long before his short-order wizard, John Stannard, was pumping out food to a long counter-full of customers.

    Even though it was the middle of the Great Depression, the Valdemar prices were within the reach of most people. The average meal cost about 50cents; a cup of coffee about 5 cents; a sandwich would  set the customer back about two-bits; and a cup of coffee with a piece of pie was 15 cents.

    Butterfield’s Garage and the Valdemar Diner were cheek-to-jowl in those days and surrounded by a variety of small businesses. Behind the diner was Earle Gorham’s Nash Dealership, and behind that was an auto body shop. Closer to the river was a miniature golf course, and on the north side of Butterfield’s was the Barracuda Restaurant.

    It’s not exactly clear when the Diner was moved to its present location but it was probably during the early years of World War II. Swanson bought the land next to what is now The Town Hall Theater, a building which has gone through several incarnations of its own. Once again the Diner was on the move, crawling back down Main Street and then negotiating the turn onto Merchant’s Row.

    Soon after it was moved to its new location it was sold to Pete Sharon. Nickel pinball machines came into popularity at about this time and one ended up in the back of the restaurant next to the wash tubs. Sharon eventually sold the Diner to a fellow by the name of Bolli, but Bolli’s career was very brief. The property slipped through the hands of several owners within just a few years and finally ended up being purchased by Charlie and Francis Smith in 1946. The two brothers had just been mustered out of the war and were anxious to settle down. Charlie did the cooking and Francis became the counterman and general manager. By the early 50s the original diner had become quite dilapidated and the Smith’s decided to demolish it and put up a stick-built building. In 1951, Bill Reynolds, a local builder, tore down the metal structure and erected the building that exists today.

    The Smiths sold the Park Diner---as it was now called--- in the mid-70s and, once again, the restaurant went through several owners until it was bought by Steve Dow in 1989. Steve had graduated from the Culinary Institute of America in 1971, and was a chef at Middlebury College when the Park Diner came up for sale. It was a pivotal moment for both Steve and the Diner. Both have benefited greatly from this propitious union. Steve has added immeasurably to the quality and character of the restaurant. Most recently he has installed all new tables, booths, chairs and carpet, and a new coat of paint graces the walls. Steve and his family have another business that benefits Steve’s Park Diner and the lucky customers who start their day there.

    This “hobby business” is called the Sugar Brook Maple Company and produces several hundred gallons of first class Vermont Maple syrup every year from the family’s sugar orchard. This year was especially sweet and Steve told me that they had produced about 700 gallons of syrup, most of which will be poured across acres of Diner pancakes this coming year.

    The degree of any business success can be measured by employee and customer turnover. Steve’s Diner has a very consistent customer base. Each and every morning, week after week, the same faces can be seen at the Diner. It is not only a first class breakfast and lunch dining experience, but also a meeting place and social emporium for locals and tourists alike. In other words, for many of us, it is home away from home. The same can be said for the employees. Once employed they stay for years. For instance, Sarah Provancha, Steve and Beth’s daughter, started working at the restaurant in high school and has been there for 13 years. Henry Stowe has been an employee at the Diner for the past 13 years also; Courtney Provancha, a waitress, has been there for eight years;Terry Purrinton for six years; Mary Kemp has been waiting on tables for 13 years and Debbie Robinson has been there for at least 15 years, nearly as long as Steve.

    You can leave Middlebury for months or years, as this writer has often done, enter the diner on your return and see friends and maybe even a few relatives, all under the same roof. Knowing that the Diner is in good hands is my security blanket, no matter where I may be. Perhaps it is yours as well. Hang around long enough at Steve’s Park Diner and the world will come to you.

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