Diner lingo 4357583 224016926 2008-07-06T23:14:31Z Snigbrook 4995598 rm example.com {{Unreferenced|date=April 2008}} '''Diner Lingo''' is a kind of verbal shorthand used by cooks and chefs in [[diners]] and diner-style restaurants, as well as [[Waffle House|waffle houses]]. ==History== The origin of the lingo is unknown, but there is evidence suggesting it may have been used by African-American waiters as early as the 1870s and 1880s. Many of the terms used are lighthearted and tongue-in-cheek and some are a bit racy or ribald, but are helpful [[mnemonic]] devices for short-order cooks and staff. Diner [[slang]] was most popular from the 1920s to the 1970s. Today, diner lingo is not as prevalent as it was in the past because the rise of the fast food industry has in large part replaced the diner. Also, the use of computerized order systems has eliminated the need for wait staff to "call" orders. However, the use of restaurant diner lingo is still present in small towns as well as retro-style restaurants and is a colorful part of [[Americana]]. ==Restaurant/Diner Lingo List== '''A blonde with sand:''' coffee with cream and sugar '''A Murphy:''' a potato, so called because of their association with the Irish diet of potatoes, Murphy being a common Irish name '''A spot with a twist:''' a cup of tea with lemon '''A stack of Vermont:''' pancakes with maple syrup '''An M.D.:''' a [[Dr Pepper]] '''Adam & Eve on a raft:''' two poached eggs on toast '''Adam's Ale:''' water '''All hot:''' baked potato '''Angel:''' sandwich man '''Angels on horseback:''' oysters rolled in bacon on toast '''B & B:''' bread and butter '''B.L.T.:''' [[BLT sandwich|bacon, lettuce, and tomato sandwich]] '''Bailed hay:''' shredded wheat '''Balloon juice/Belch water/Alka Seltzer:''' seltzer, soda water '''Beef Stick:''' bone '''Billiard:''' buttermilk '''Birdseed:''' breakfast '''Black and white:''' chocolate soda with vanilla ice cream '''Bloodhounds in the Hay:''' hot dogs and [[sauerkraut]] '''Bloody:''' very rare '''Blowout patches:''' pancakes '''Blue-plate special:''' a dish of meat, potato, and vegetable served on a plate (usually blue) sectioned in three parts. This can also refer to the daily special. '''Boiled leaves:''' Tea '''Bow-wow/Bun pup/Tube steak/Groundhog:''' a hot dog '''Bowl of red:''' a bowl of chili con carne, so called for its deep red color. '''Break it and shake it:''' add egg to a drink '''Breath:''' onion '''Bridge/Bridge party:''' four of anything (from bridge the card game) '''Bronx vanilla/Halitosis/Italian Garlic:''' garlic '''Bubble Dancer:''' dishwasher '''Bucket of cold mud:''' a bowl of chocolate ice cream '''Bullets/Whistleberries/Saturday night:''' Baked beans, so called because of the supposed flatulence they cause. '''Burn one:''' put a hamburger on the grill '''Burn one, take it through the garden and pin a rose on it:''' hamburger with lettuce, tomato and onion '''Burn the British:''' toasted English muffin '''C.J. Boston:''' cream cheese and jelly '''Cackle fruit/Cackleberries:''' eggs '''Canned cow:''' evaporated milk '''Check the ice:''' look at the pretty girl who just came in '''Chewed with Fine Breath:''' hamburger with onions '''China:''' rice pudding '''Chopper:''' a table knife '''Clean up the kitchen:''' hash '''Coney Island chicken/Coney Island bloodhound/Coney Island:''' a hot dog, so called because hot dogs were popularly associated with the stands on Coney Island. '''Cow feed:''' a salad '''Cow paste/Skid Grease/Axle grease:''' butter '''Cowboy Western:''' a western omelette or sandwich '''Creep:''' Draft beer '''Crowd:''' three of anything (possibly from the saying "Two's company, three's a crowd") '''Customer will take a chance:''' hash '''Deadeye:''' poached egg '''Dough well done with cow to cover:''' bread and butter '''Drag one through Georgia:''' cola with chocolate syrup, probably a reference to the fact that the headquarters of [[Coca-Cola]] is in Atlanta, Georgia, and dragging anything is likely to get it muddy, i.e., darker, which would be the same result as adding chocolate syrup. Carbonated drinks such as Coca-Cola were originally served by pouring concentrated syrup into a glass and adding soda water, so they could be made to whatever strength the customer preferred. '''Draw one/A cup of mud:''' a cup of coffee '''Draw one in the Dark/Flowing Mississippi:''' a black coffee '''Dog and maggot:''' cracker and cheese '''Dog biscuit:''' a cracker '''Dough well done with cow to cover:''' buttered toast '''Dusty Miller:''' chocolate pudding, sprinkled with powdered malt '''Eighty-six:''' "Do not sell to that customer" or "The kitchen is out of the item ordered". "To remove an item from an order or from the menu". ''Article 86 of the New York State Liquor Code'' defines the circumstances in which a bar patron should be refused alcohol or '86ed'. ''The Soup Kitchen Theory:'' during the depression of the 1930s, soup kitchens would often make just enough soup for 85 people. If you were next in line after number 85, you were '86ed'. ''The Eight Feet By Six Feet Theory:'' A coffin is usually eight feet long and is buried six feet under. Once in your coffin you've been 'eight by sixed', which shortens to '86ed'. Chumley's Theory: Many years ago, Chumley's Restaurant, at 86 Bedford Street in Greenwich Village, New York City, had a custom of throwing rowdy customers out the back door. During Prohibition, Chumley's was a speakeasy owned by Leland Stanford Chumley. When the cops were on the way, someone would shout "86," and they would all exit through the back door. '''Eve with a lid on:''' apple pie, referring to the biblical Eve's tempting of Adam with an apple. The "lid" is the pie crust '''Eve with a moldy lid:''' apple pie with a slice of cheese '''Fifty-five:''' a glass of root beer '''First lady:''' spareribs, a pun on Eve's being made from Adam's spare rib. '''Fish eyes or Cat's eyes:''' tapioca pudding '''Flop two:''' two fried eggs, over easy '''Flop two, over easy:''' fried egg flipped over (carefully!) and the yolk is still very runny. That means the other side is cooked for a few seconds '''Flop two, over medium:''' turning over a fried egg and the yolk begins to solidify '''Flop two, over hard:''' fried egg, flipped and cooked until the yolk is solid all the way through '''Fly cake or Roach cake:''' raisin cake or huckleberry pie '''Foreign Entanglements:''' plate of spaghetti '''Frenchman's delight:''' pea soup '''Frog sticks:''' french fries '''Fry two/Let the sun shine:''' 2 fried eggs with unbroken yolks '''GAC:''' Grilled American cheese sandwich. This was also called "jack" (from the pronunciation of "GAC") '''Gallery:''' booth '''Gravel train:''' sugar bowl '''Graveyard stew:''' milk toast; buttered toast, sprinkled with sugar and cinnamon, and dropped into a bowl of warm milk '''Hail:''' ice '''Heart Attack on Rack:''' biscuits and gravy '''Hemorrhage:''' tomato ketchup '''High and dry:''' a plain sandwich without butter, mayonnaise, or lettuce '''Hockey puck:''' a hamburger, well done '''Hold the hail:''' no ice '''Honeymoon salad:''' lettuce alone '''Hot top:''' hot chocolate '''Hounds on an Island:''' franks and beans '''Houseboat/Dagwood Special:''' a banana split made with ice cream and sliced bananas '''Hug one/Squeeze one:''' a glass of orange juice '''Ice the rice:''' rice pudding with ice cream '''In the alley:''' served as a side dish '''In the weeds:''' a waitress/cook that can't keep up with the tables. Refers back to chefs' military roots, where being in the weeds would cause your army to be slaughtered. '''Irish turkey:''' corned beef and cabbage '''Jack Benny:''' cheese with bacon (named after the famed comedian) '''Java/Joe:''' coffee '''Keep off the grass:''' no lettuce '''Ladybug:''' fountain man '''Let it walk/Go for a walk/On wheels/Give it shoes:''' an order to go, a takeaway order '''Life preservers/Sinkers:''' doughnuts '''Lighthouse:''' bottle of ketchup '''Looseners:''' prunes, so called because of their supposed laxative effect. '''Love Apples:''' tomatoes '''Lumber:''' A toothpick '''Machine Oil:''' syrup '''Magoo:''' custard pie '''Maiden's delight:''' cherries, so called because "cherry" is a slang term for the maidenhead, hymen '''Marry:''' bring items together for cleaning up, i.e. marry the salt and pepper. '''Mayo:''' mayonnaise '''Mike and Ike/The twins:''' salt and pepper shakers '''Million on a platter:''' a plate of baked beans '''Mississippi Mud/Yellow paint:''' mustard '''Moo juice/Cow juice/Baby juice/Sweet Alice:''' milk '''Mully/Bossy in a bowl:''' beef stew, so called because "Bossy" was a common name for a cow. '''Mystery in the alley:''' a side order of hash '''Nervous pudding:''' gelatin '''No cow:''' without milk '''Noah's boy:''' a slice of ham (Ham was Noah's second son) '''Noah's boy on bread:''' a ham sandwich '''Noah's boy with Murphy carrying a wreath:''' ham and potatoes with cabbage '''On a Rail''' fast, as in "Fries, on a rail!" '''On the hoof:''' any kind of meat, cooked rare '''One from the Alps:''' a Swiss cheese sandwich '''One on the City:''' a glass of water '''Paint a bow-wow red:''' a hot dog with ketchup '''Paint it red:''' put ketchup on an item '''Pair of drawers:''' two cups of coffee '''Pigs in a blanket:''' a ham (sometimes a sausage) sandwich '''Pin a rose on it:''' add onion to an order '''Pittsburgh:''' something burning, toasted or charred, so called because of the smokestacks once evident in Pittsburgh, a coal-producing and steel-mill city. In meat cookery, this refers to a piece of meat charred on the outside while still red within. '''Pope Benedict:''' an eggs benedict, but fit for a pope '''Put a hat on it:''' add ice cream '''Put out the lights and cry:''' an order of liver and onions, "Lights" is a term sometimes used for the edible, mainly internal organs of an animal '''Quail:''' Hungarian goulash '''Rabbit food:''' lettuce '''Radar Range:''' microwave oven, from the [[Amana Corporation|Amana]] [[Radarange]], whose parent company, [[Raytheon]], was the first to manufacture and market the microwave oven. '''Radio:''' tuna salad sandwich on toast (a pun on "tuna down," which sounds like "turn it down," as one would the radio knob) '''Radio Sandwich:''' tuna fish sandwich '''Raft:''' toast '''Sea dust:''' Salt '''Shake one in the hay:''' strawberry milkshake '''Shingle with a shimmy and a shake:''' buttered toast with jam or jelly, hence the reference to 'shake'. '''Shit on a shingle/S.O.S.:''' minced dried beef with gravy on toast, mostly because it was a reviled standard fare in army messes '''Shivering Hay:''' strawberry gelatin '''Shoot from the south/Atlanta special:''' [[Coca-Cola]], probably a reference to the fact that the headquarters of Coca-Cola is in Atlanta, Georgia. '''Shot out of the blue bottle:''' [[Bromo-Seltzer]] '''Slab of moo--let him chew it:''' rare rump steak '''Sleigh Ride Special:''' vanilla pudding '''Smear:''' margarine '''Soup jockey:''' waitress '''Splash of red noise:''' a bowl of tomato soup '''Stack/Short stack:''' order of pancakes '''Sun kiss/Oh jay (O.J.):''' orange juice '''Sunny-side up:''' the eggs are fried without flipping them, so the yolk looks just like a sun on white background '''Sweep the kitchen/Sweepings/Clean up the kitchen:''' a plate of hash '''Throw it in the mud:''' add chocolate syrup '''Twelve alive in a shell:''' a dozen raw oysters '''Two cows, make them cry:''' Two hamburgers with onions '''Vermont:''' maple syrup, because maple syrup comes primarily from the state of Vermont in the U.S. '''Walk a cow through the garden:''' Hamburger with lettuce, tomato and onion '''Warts:''' Olives '''Wax:''' American cheese '''Well-dressed diner:''' codfish '''Whiskey:''' rye bread, as in rye whiskey '''Whiskey down:''' rye toast, the 'down' part probably comes from the action of pushing down the handle on the toaster '''White Cow:''' vanilla milkshake '''Windmill Cocktail/City juice/Dog soup:''' glass of water '''Wreath:''' cabbage '''Wreck ‘em:''' scrambled eggs '''Yesterday, today, and forever:''' hash '''Yum Yum/Sand:''' sugar '''Zeppelin:''' sausage '''Zeppelins in a fog:''' sausages and mashed potatoes ==Pop Culture References== * In an episode of [[The Odd Couple (TV series)]], sportswriter Oscar Madison uses diner lingo when he moonlights as a counter man at a [[greasy spoon]]. While dictating his column to his secretary, he confuses an order to go with a recap of a football game- telling his secretary, "The lone Dallas touchdown came when [[Bob Lilly]] intercepted a meatloaf, fruit salad and 2 scoops of chocolate traveling." * [[Ray Romano]] discusses diner lingo in his act when he talks about how it doesn't carry over into other professions. The bit can be heard on his ''Live from Carnegie Hall'' album. * In an episode of ''[[The Emperor's New School]]'', the school cook is imprisoned for using diner slang that even she doesn't understand. * In an episode of [[Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me]] aired on December 31, 2006, host [[Peter Sagal]] quizzes [[Charlie Pierce]] on "Diner Slang". * In the sci-fi series [[Stargate SG-1]], some scenes incorporate diner lingo. Of note are scenes in the episodes "Threads" (from season eight) and the season ten episode, "Memento Mori". In "Threads", the ascended Ancient, [[Oma Desala]], speaks both to [[Daniel Jackson]] and to the chef in diner lingo. In "Memento Mori", the waitress, Val ([[Vala Mal Doran]]) speaks to the owner, Sal, using diner lingo. * In an episode of the sitcom ''[[Friends]]'', [[Phoebe Buffay]] uses diner lingo to convince [[Monica Geller]] she can work as a waitress. * Brenda Walsh, appearing as her alter-ego Laverne, uses diner lingo in an episode of [[Beverly Hills 90210]] while filling in for Brandon at the Peach Pit. * In an advertisement for the [[Food Network]] television show [[Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives]], host [[Guy Fieri]] places an order to a waitress using only diner lingo. * One episode of [[Higglytown Heroes]] on [[Playhouse Disney]] takes place in Uncle Lemmo's diner and quite fittingly makes use of diner lingo. * In a first season episode of [[Spongebob Squarepants]], Bubble Bass orders his Krabby Patty using complicated diner lingo, which only Spongebob can understand. * In the [[Three Stooges]] short "Playing the Ponies," a customer orders two eggs on toast. Moe relays this to Curly by saying "Adam and Eve on a raft." The customer then asks for the eggs to be scrambled, which prompts Moe to tell Curly to "wreck 'em." * In the late 1980s there was a New York City band called Whysky Down. * In an episode of [[Fresh Prince of Bel-Air]] the Banks family's orders are translated into diner lingo when the chef calls to the back of the kitchen. * In third season episode of [[I Love Lucy]], "The Diner," Fred and Ethel relive their experiences when they worked at a diner while stranded in Indiana. ==See also== *[[Coffee shop]] *[[Diner]] *[[Greasy spoon]] ==External links== * [http://www.flickr.com/photos/drp/26256773/ Adam And Eve On A Raft, And Wreck 'Em] - a photo (and story) at [[flickr]] [[Category:Restaurant terminology]] [[Category:Diners| ]]