Scrapple? Pancakes? 5 Delaware diners readers recommend, plus more you may want to try

Patricia Talorico, Delaware News Journal
Updated ·5 min read

Taste is subjective. People like what they like. And almost any list is going to start a debate.

Some readers looked at our recent suggestions of Delaware diners to try, a spinoff of the Reader's Digest recent story on the 50 most iconic diners in America, which included Lucky's Coffee Shop in Talleyville, and said, "You forgot [fill in the blank]."

We listened.

There's never going to be a list that pleases everyone, but here are five more Delaware diners and diner-style restaurants (plus a few extras) that readers say are worth a visit:

Doyle's Restaurant

38218 Dupont Blvd., Selbyville, doylesdiner.com

In this July 13, 2006 photo, Reese Hickman is served blueberry pancakes with eggs sunny side up, bacon and syrup by waitress Jessie Donovan at Doyle's Restaurant in Selbyville.
In this July 13, 2006 photo, Reese Hickman is served blueberry pancakes with eggs sunny side up, bacon and syrup by waitress Jessie Donovan at Doyle's Restaurant in Selbyville.

When it comes to the best preserved stainless steel diner in the state, Doyle's in Selbyville (formerly Woody's) is the oldest.

In 2015, a historical marker was placed outside of the beautifully preserved Silk City diner that sits off U.S. Route 113. The Silk City diner car was first brought to Sussex County from Paterson, New Jersey, in 1950.

The Sturgis family owned and operated the property until 1983 when it was purchased by the Doyle family.

A historical photograph of Woody's Diner was part of the ceremony on Saturday, March 22, 2015, when Doyle's Restaurant on Dupont Highway (Route 113) in Selbyville was honored with a Delaware State Historical Site Marker. The site was formally known as Woody's Diner. The business has been around since 1950.
A historical photograph of Woody's Diner was part of the ceremony on Saturday, March 22, 2015, when Doyle's Restaurant on Dupont Highway (Route 113) in Selbyville was honored with a Delaware State Historical Site Marker. The site was formally known as Woody's Diner. The business has been around since 1950.

For breakfast, Doyle's House special is a Delmonico steak, three pancakes and two eggs for $23.99. The deluxe breakfast is a giant ham steak and three eggs for $13.99. Refills on coffee are free, and breakfast sandwiches can be made with scrapple, sausage, country ham or pork tenderloin.

We like the weekly specials, especially a Sussex County delight like the all-you-eat chicken and slippery dumplings that are offered every Thursday for $12.99.

Hours are 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. Friday and Saturday.

Urban Kitchen

3228 Kirkwood Highway, Prices Corner; urbankitchende.com

Brothers-in-law Jimmy Nitsolas and Phil Hanos, who together have more than 40 years of experience in the restaurant industry, opened the restaurant in the Prices Corner Shopping Center off Kirkwood Highway in early February 2022.

Onion rings are super crunchy at the Urban Kitchen restaurant in the Prices Corner Shopping Center on March 9, 2023.
Onion rings are super crunchy at the Urban Kitchen restaurant in the Prices Corner Shopping Center on March 9, 2023.

Many know the pair from their 18 years of service at the former Hollywood Grille off Concord Pike.

The restaurant, tucked in a corner between the GNC and JCPenney stores, has a cool wall mural and plenty of sleek booths and banquette seating.

It offers a family dining experience with modern, diner-like menus and a fully stocked bar. Breakfast and lunch are served until 3 p.m. The dinner menu is available from 3 p.m. until closing.

Urban Kitchen is one of several businesses to come to the Prices Corner shopping center since it started undergoing renovations in 2019. Its sign replaced a similarly angled Radioshack sign that was left several years after the store closed.
Urban Kitchen is one of several businesses to come to the Prices Corner shopping center since it started undergoing renovations in 2019. Its sign replaced a similarly angled Radioshack sign that was left several years after the store closed.

The large menu includes pancakes; six varieties of eggs Benedict; sausage gravy and biscuits; build-your-own omelets; breakfast sandwiches; "pig candy," or bacon baked with brown sugar and maple syrup; fish tacos; chicken sandwiches; Greek salad; panini; spaghetti; baked flounder; steak; and fish and chips.

Hours are 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday and 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday. The restaurant is closed on Mondays.

Angel’s Restaurant

2222 Silverside Road, Brandywine Hundred. facebook.com/p/Angels-Restaurant-100058747285438/

One Yelper said Angel's is "a small but mighty Ma and Pa shop right near a few neighborhoods." Others call the restaurant within the Silverside Dairy property, next door to Rita's Water Ice, "a hidden gem."

Whether you want a bowl of oatmeal to start the day or a cheeseburger omelet, $12, or chicken fajita omelet, $12, Angel's has been a people pleaser for more than 20 years. The lunch menu has patty melts, grilled Reubens, flounder sandwiches and Greek lasagna.

Hours are 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sunday.

Quinn's Cafe

7288 Lancaster Pike, Shoppes of Hockessin, Hockessin; quinnscafe.com

Owner John Quinn opened his Quinn’s Cafe in February 2011 and quickly developed a following of loyal local regulars. The cozy cafe, open for breakfast and lunch, is located at the entrance of the Shoppes of Hockessin, across from Doc's Meat Market. The pineapple in the sign and window signals the friendly hospitality.

Breakfast, which is served all day, can include creamed chipped beef or sausage gravy over toast or biscuits with home fries. Specialty pancakes can come with bananas, cranberries, walnuts, blueberries, apples, strawberries, coconut or chocolate chips.

Quinn's Cafe, owned by John Quinn, has been serving breakfast and lunch in Hockessin since February 2011. The restaurant is shown on Sept. 27, 2023.
Quinn's Cafe, owned by John Quinn, has been serving breakfast and lunch in Hockessin since February 2011. The restaurant is shown on Sept. 27, 2023.

There are all kinds of omelets, as well as a meat lover's wrap, a mix of eggs, sausage, bacon, ham, and American cheese enveloped in a tortilla. Lunch ranges from BLTs to black bean burgers to barbecue pork sandwiches. It can get busy on the weekends, but you can call ahead for a table only on Saturdays and Sundays.

Hours are 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Friday and 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.

Frankford Family Diner

34067 Dupont Blvd., Frankford, frankfordfamilydiner.com

If want to power through the day with an early morning fuel-up, readers tells us to go to Frankford Family Diner for everything from the pancakes to the crispy bacon to the all-you-can-eat pasta on Monday nights.

Fuel-up in the First State: Reader's Digest picked the best Delaware diner. 10 more suggestions for breakfast, beyond

Customers praise the diner's hearty portions — "plenty of food" — and one noted in a online review: "Good food and service, much better quality than you would expect from a diner." Praise also has been given to "the best chipped beef and delicious sausage." Breakfast is served anytime of the day.

Open daily from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m.

Delaware memories: Do you remember the William Penn Diner at Hares Corner?

More Delaware diners to try

In this Sept. 28, 2007 photo, Maria Perdikis, owner of Newport Restaurant, poses in the dining room. The 90-seat eatery in the Graystone Plaza shopping center off Del. 4, opened in 1982 and has mostly booths. It is a haven for comfort food lovers.
In this Sept. 28, 2007 photo, Maria Perdikis, owner of Newport Restaurant, poses in the dining room. The 90-seat eatery in the Graystone Plaza shopping center off Del. 4, opened in 1982 and has mostly booths. It is a haven for comfort food lovers.

And here are a few more suggestions: Route 3 Diner on Veale Road in Brandywine Hundred; Libby's Restaurant in downtown Wilmington; Newport Restaurant at Greystone Plaza in Newport; the Route 40 Diner in Bear; Golden Eagle Diner and Stargate Diner, both in Seaford; Odessa Diner; The Legend in New Castle; and Dover Hollywood Diner.

If you're looking for 24-hour diners, try the Wilmington Diner in Penny Hill and the Concord Diner in Fairfax.

Contact Patricia Talorico at ptalorico@delawareonline.com or 302-324-2861 and follow her on X (Twitter) @pattytalorico Sign up for her Delaware Eats newsletter.

This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: 5 Delaware diners readers say we can't miss (plus more we recommend)