LTHForum.com

Chicagoist has me worried:

http://chicagoist.com/2008/08/27/has_di ... st_sli.php

Any news or recon available?

I was just there. Looks like a not-devastating grease fire. Sign in the window said "closed for remodeling due to fire."

I drove by today on the way to a fantastic lunch at the Globe (was very surprised to find a phenomenal beer list at a place I've never heard about), and it doesn't look serious. Diner Grill actually looked like it always does (all the lights were on), just no one manning the grill or anyone inside. If it's going to reopen, it won't take long.

Thanks for the ace investigative work. It would be a shame to lose an institution such as the Diner Grill.

I find it amusing how many descriptions of the Slinger are slightly confused. Of course there's a very good reason for that.


Don't forget the two fried eggs, an important part of the Slinger.


The hash browns aren't on top. They form the foundation.


Cheese and onions don't top the Slinger (see the photo that accompanies the above description). You get your cheese on the burgers and your onions with the hash browns. Adding more would be excessive.

Here's a prized possession, my Certificate of Stupidity signed by Rich, best grillman ever.

My favorite Slinger story is from several years ago. A group of us found ourselves hungry after a night at the Artful Dodger (RIP.) It ended up being a dismal night for one of my friends as his leather jacket was stolen from the bar. (Don't ask me why he didn't have a "bar jacket" with him, but I digress.) We were sitting next to two other hungry, slightly inebriated patrons. The conversation turned into a bet as to how quickly my friend could eat a Slinger. Our counter mates bet $100 that my friend couldn't finish it in 10 minutes or less. Little did they know that they were betting against a human vacuum. Seven minutes later, our counter mates were poorer and my friend was on his way to a down payment on a new coat. He said he could have eaten it faster if he had let it sit for a few more minutes before the official timer started. The grill man was so moved (amused? bemused?) by my friend's stolen coat tale and the Slinger inhalation that my friend was awarded a blue stuffed dinosaur that was on a shelf. The Blue Thing, as we fondly named it, was a dusty, stale grease-scented relic that never regained the place of honor it had on the shelf at the Diner Grill.

All of this reminds me that I am long overdue for a trip to the Diner Grill when they reopen!

LTH,

I called Arnold's at Broadway and Irving, same owners as Diner Grill, and the woman who answered Arnold's phone said they are trying to reopen Diner Grill as fast as possible, maybe one week.

Enjoy,
Gary

I wouldn't worry too much. IIRC,the same guy owns Arnold's‎ @ 4001 Broadway and maybe others? I'm sure he'll rebuild.

Arnold's
4001 N Broadway
Chicago, IL 60613
(773) 929-3338

Drove past this afternoon and they were open for business.

Open, cleaner, better than ever. New menu signs and some new, completely utilitarian fixtures inside are the only differences. The atmosphere has not changed an iota. Cheeseburger with bacon and egg and some swell hash browns hit the spot. One must get ham (cut to order off the bone) or bacon (thick cut and always griddled to order) with anything at DG. If I ever order a Slinger again (doubtful), it's going to have a side of ham on it.