Cheyenne Diner

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The Cheyenne Diner in its original site in New York City. Photographed November 2008 by Paul Lowry

The Cheyenne Diner (originally the Market Diner) is a classic diner which opened in 1930 at 411 9th Avenue at 33rd Street in New York City's Chelsea neighborhood. It remained there until 2009, when it began its move to a new entertainment district in Talladega.

The present 15' x 96' art moderne stainless-steel and glass building dates to 1940 and is of the "railroad car" type design produced by Paramount Diners of New Jersey. The exterior of the building is stainless steel with inset enameled panels below the windows and a neon sign on the cornice. The door and a bank of pay phones is sheltered under a curving roof extension at the corner. The door is flanked by glass block pillars. Interior walls and counters are faced with burgundy and white ceramic tile, with burgundy enamel mullions between the windows.

Originally part of the "Market Diner" chain operated by the Zelin family, its name was changed to Cheyenne in 1986. At that time the menu was updated to include "bison burgers" and "mohegan burgers" with bacon, cheese, barbecue sauce and fried onions. The interior decor also adopted a western theme, with photographs of Native Americans alongside the promotional glossies from celebrities. At the time it closed the curved ceiling was illuminated with sconces and the booths were upholstered in red and gray vinyl with stained wood trim. New York Architecture listed the Cheyenne as the best diner in New York [1].

On April 6, 2008 the Cheyenne closed for good and property owner George Papas made plans for a 9-story condominium tower on the site. Preservationist Michael Perlman, who earlier brokered a deal to save the Moondance Diner by finding a buyer in Wyoming, formed a "Committee to Save the Cheyenne Diner". A deal to move the diner to Red Hook, Brooklyn proved unworkable because no roadway from Manhattan to Brooklyn would allow the diner's sections to make the trip. In the summer of 2008 the diner was used as a filming location for a Quentin Crisp bio-pic entitled An Englishman in New York.

Move

In January 2009 Perlman brokered a deal with a Birmingham couple, Joel Owens and Patti Miller, opening the way for the diner to be relocated to the Talladega area to become part of a planned "Going Back Entertainment" center to be anchored by a classic car museum and special events center. The couple is also considering purchasing seating and furnishings from the recently-closed landmark Ridgewood Theater on Myrtle Avenue at the border of Brooklyn and Queens and has bought signage and other elements from the 1950s Jay Dee Bakery in Forest Hills, Queens.

In September 2009 the first section of the diner began its trip south. Information about the project was shared at the Alabama Butterbean Festival in Pinson that month. It arrived in Birmingham on October 8 and was parked at an undisclosed site pending progress on the planned development. In July 2011 it was reported that a great deal of restoration had been done while the diner remained in storage, and that an announcement would be imminent regarding the development it would anchor.

In March 2013 al.com reporter Madison Underwood followed up and learned that the diner was still being stored while its owners attempted to negotiate for public incentives to facilitate their development plans.

References

External links

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