Late Night Hunger Are you looking for somewhere to be other than your bed at 3 A.M.? Are you bored after the local high school football games, dances, or just anytime? Are you a teenage kid that probably has a curfew and shouldn’t be out anyway? If ... more

Late Night Hunger Are you looking for somewhere to be other than your bed at 3 A.M.? Are you bored after the local high school football games, dances, or just anytime? Are you a teenage kid that probably has a curfew and shouldn’t be out anyway? If you said “YES!” to any of those questions this is the place for you! That’s right, I’m talking about the infamous 5th Street Diner located in Temple, PA. It’s right next to all the local necessities, right near the high school, and most developments. So it is convenient and close to most people in the area. Best of all, it is open at all hours, so next time you are hungry for pancakes in the middle of the night, you can pick up all your friends and go! Kids, adults, the elderly, but especially teenagers all love it there and with good reason too, for a diner, the food is not that bad. Sometimes your “piping hot” plate of mashed potatoes and meatloaf may be a little cold, but what do you expect, it’s a diner. It’s not in 5th Street’s rule book to have one hundred percent perfect quality every time. The food is particularly good at breakfast time. The pancakes and bacon are the way to go if eating there in the morning, or even have it at night. When you order your pancakes, you get a choice of what kind of fruit you would like on it, if any, and if you want whipped cream or not. This is my favorite dish at 5th Street because it is simple, fast, and delicious! You can never mess up pancakes too drastically. The last time I went there I got the short stack of pancakes with strawberry fruit topping and whipped cream, yummy! It was like heaven. The service at 5th Street is always polite and the wait staff gives you plenty of time to decide what you are having. You always know you will be well taken care of service wise when you come to 5th Street. There are always many waitresses on staff at any given time, so you are seated quickly, and your order is taken swiftly. The food never takes long to be made and delivered to your table either, maybe ten minutes at most. Another plus to the wait staff at 5th Street is that they do not get angry when you are loitering, which is wonderful, since there is not much else to do in our little town, especially in the middle of the night. As far as price, it is very reasonable. How else could kids like me afford it? The food ranges in price from a $2.00 basket of mozzarella sticks to a $4.00 plate of chicken strips. Everything is very inexpensive so you don’t really have to worry about watching your wallet. If you are trying to impress someone, or are looking for something more on the fancy side, 5th Street is not the place to go. It’s not all that impressive, it’s just a hang out place for kids and a cheap place to get in and out to eat for adults and seniors. The outside atmosphere is very old-school. It’s chrome with a neon red stripe. On the inside there are plenty of booths and tables for as many people as you want to bring in with you. The entryway has a large counter full of rotating cakes and pastries which all look delectable. There is also a counter you can eat at if you are eating alone, or if you just want to get in and out extra fast for any reason. Most of the flooring in 5th Street is carpeted but the entryway and in front of the counter is covered in linoleum flooring. The 5th Street Diner is a very clean place to eat. I’ve eaten there many times and have never seen anything disgusting like bugs on the walls or hair in my food. The wait staff cleans off the tables promptly and the carpet never looks dirty. I have never eaten at the counter but I can assume its well taken care of as well. So the next time you are bored and hungry at night nothing to do and of course no food in the house, you know where to go! If you are looking for a place that is quick, decent, and cheap, 5th Street is it, as long as it’s past midnight. less