I\'ve been going to the VIP a few times week for about 20 years. It\'s the cleanest, most consistently dependable restaurant in the Journal Square area. I usually have to ask the manager to turn down the \"background music\" that is neither background nor music (whiny, repetitive, 6-note lines are noise, not music). He does so without grumble.

One day this past summer I was there waiting for a business associate. He was late so I ordered and ate. He showed up about the time I finished. He ordered an ice tea. The waiter, one I\'d never seen before, was clearly annoyed at the ice-tea order.

\"Is *that* all? That\'s *it* ?\"

My friend explained to he was late because his parents were with him, waiting out in the car and had themselves been late. He said his father - who is also involved in the son\'s business - wanted to come in and personally deliver a small gift. The father is old-school Chinese and token gifts are common.

So he called the father on his cell phone. Father and mother come in. The usual bowing and hand shakes all around. The usual courtesy of \"please sit down\" followed. Father gives me a nice little bound notebook. I happen to have very nicely packaged pen that I\'d intended for someone else, so I gave that to the father. Total maybe 5 minutes.

I get the bill, glance at it and leave my usual 20% tip. My visitors preceded me out the door as I stopped to pay the bill.

Then I noticed an unexplained extra on the bill. When I started to ask about it, the young, and also never seen before, manager cuts me off. He is rude. He has clearly been waiting for my question and can\'t wait to sock me with the charge.

\"Sir, Look at the menu, sir.\"

Anytime someone calls you Sir twice in one sentence, the contempt they have for you is pretty obvious.

\"Sir, it\'s clearly stated there, the charge for non-ordering customers who occupy a seat, sir. \"

Apparently, in my 20 years of as a customer, I missed the agate type at the foot of a back page. How stupid of me.

Young rude manager kept interrupting when I tried to speak. I had people waiting for me outside. So I paid the bill and go a receipt - but before leaving, I went back to the table and retrieved the tip with a parting sneer to the waiter.

Next day I went back to the VIP while Peter, the owner, was there.

I described what happened. He refunded the extra charge. Offered an apology for the incident.

\"The waiter is supposed to tell you when people sit down and don\'t order that there will be a charge so you can leave and avoid it. No matter how many times I keep telling them not to do it this way . . . thank God it doesn\'t happen so often.\"

Staff rudeness can happen any time, and not with the owner\'s knowledge - even contrary to his instructions to the staff.

So, Brownstone or VIP, whatever . . . when this stuff happens, talk with the guy who owns the business and you probably will get much better treatment.

BTW - Never saw that waiter again. Whenever I come near the cashier desk to pay a bill, that rude manager manages to get away from the register and have someone else take the money. I admit I enjoy his discomfort which he could end anytime he wanted to acknowlege that we had a disagreement that is resolved - but no; He\'d rather sulk. (hee hee).

PS - their 3 egg omlets - are excellent.

I am a brownstoner survivor too. Went there for years, was treated poorly one day, posted it here, the family found out. Haven't been back since, not really allowed to anyway....
But, thankfully JC has an abundance of good diners.
I am a fan of Al's, miss america and I will occasionally go to the VIP for the potato pancakes. All great places. I've been to the White Mana(sp?) but other than the awesome tiled floor and the cranky cook(which I can appreciate), the food's not so great.
I'd like to give the colonette a try, the name alone is enticing enough for me.

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this is the correct response

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Thank you, Grovester, for sharing. I've seen bad service there and, like you, began to get the impression that they were getting cocky and losing their investment in customer service.

I don't need a constant sunny disposition, but that's a social violation.

I believe your story. I had been going there less and less over the last year+. Now, they are off my list completely.

Eventually, they will either get the message and begin to appreciate their customers and their bounty, or they will go out of business.

I hereby withdraw my defense of Brownstone. I will admit, when I first read these posts about Brownstone saying "too bad, don't come back" or whatever, I thought "Nah... you must have been really difficult customers or done something." (I mean, who would believe that a restaurant would treat their customers that badly?)

So, here's my story:

I go to Brownstone maybe once a month. I've brought numerous other friends there. I think I've always been a good customer, tipped well, etc. And, like the previous poster, I've suffered silently through bad service thinking "Well, they're very busy..."

This morning, I went with a few friends (4 people in our party total). The waiter spilled a hot coffee on my friend's lap. The waiter kind of awkwardly stood around, he kind of apologized maybe, he mostly just looked stunned like he wasn't sure what he should do. He did mention "taking care of it."

I thought that maybe they would take care of something on the bill - the friend's meal, or even if they were really cheap, her drink at least.

But, no, we got the bill, and were charged fully for everything. By this time, my friend's lap had dried for the most part, there wasn't a big obvious spot. My friend, the coffee victim, tried speaking to the owner's daughter, but her only response was "Do you want me to call an ambulance?" When my friend responded that she didn't need an ambulance, she walked away.

Thinking he could maybe diffuse/resolve the situation, my boyfriend went and tried to discuss it again. At this point, it wasn't so much about the money, it was about the way they handled it. It was as if my friend had somehow deserved the coffee spilled on her... or made it up. (If that's what they believed, they could have asked the waiter who spilled the coffee.)

She very sarcastically offered my boyfriend the diner's insurance information. And then she said, "Fine, I'll take it off the bill, but never come back in here again."

We payed the bill in full and left. I would never go back anyway.

I guess maybe they figure that, because they always have a line out the door, they have no reason to treat customers with decency.

But, I for one (and my friends) don't have to stand in that line, or take that kind of treatment again.

Best diner in New Jersey is easily the Pompton Queen on Route 23.

Have not been satisfied with takeout from Brownstone lately. Burgers border on "terrible" at this point. And adding insult to the injury of a dry overcooked lifeless patty, they keep forgeting the cheese.

breakfast always seems ok there, though.

Think most of the above dinners are about average. I grew up close to the Miss America, and have to say it has gone a bit downhill, but over all, its not so bad. I would have to say Al's is the best discussed so far.

the Brownstone used to be the Newport pancake house.

Al's has good breakfast and burgers but some times the people that patronize it arent the best of society.

The Brownstone has a large menu and great food but can be a little pricey.

The VIP's & Miss America's food is fair, nothing to write home about

The Flamingo is not the cleanest but it is by far the cheapest and fastest serving diner in Jersey City.

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I don't think so. My boyfriend and I go there for brunch about once a month. Since I always feel kind of conflicted about whether to order breakfast food or lunch food at brunch, usually one of us will order a breakfast food (pancakes or french toast) and the other one of us will order a burger or sandwich. Then we usually cut our food in half and switch plates. Never got a charge.

So, I don't know how the rule DOES work, but it doesn't seem like it'd apply in this situation.

I recently ate at the Brownstone and I thought it was pretty good, I liked the bustling atmosphere. I also liked the flamingo and thought it felt like a real neighborhood place. I really haven't had the chance to make it to other parts of the city yet for the other recommendations on this thread but I am looking forward to sampling those eateries also.

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I believe it. They said the same thing to me. Haven't been back since. They've got this 'we're so popular , who needs you' attitude.

my favorite diner is the brownstone. i can't believe that happened there. i wonder who you talked to, because I can't imagine Bobby (the owner) doing that.

Wait a minute, wait a minute....

Let me get this straight, if I go in there with my friend Ed and we both order meals but Ed gives me a couple of french fries and......the waiter sees me take the fries off his plate????.........then we get charged for sharing?????

Someone needs to get on the phone with this place and clarify pronto.

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Brownstone diner rots! ok, not really - my husband and I loved it and went all the time...but then, one sad sad day - we got our check and were charged a $4 plate sharing charge. why, you may ask? well, he ordered a regularly priced meal and I ordered a couple sides and drink (totaling only $5 or so)...but here's the tricky part - I ate a few bites of his pancake and literally two bites of sausage.

I'm all for weird restaurant policies, IF you let the customer know...I ordered the minimum amount required (I think it's 5)...so if I'm not allowed to eat off his plate, then they should have come over with a plate - said, "here's a plate for you, and it comes with a $4 charge"...just let me know of your crazy rules. I thought plate sharing charges only applied to people who didn't order anything or ordered a small amount.

so - we paid it, much to my anger! (we had little cash, otherwise, I would've just left cash, minus the $4 and walked out - but we had to put it on a debit card)...my hubby told the owner that we would never be back...she said, "fine." what?! we were such loyal patrons - spent a lot of money there - and we are good tippers and don't expect much. even when the waitstaff was extremely unattentive at times - we still didn't complain.

oh well - we've now written off two JC establishments: Hard Grove - cuz it just plain sucks now. and Brownstone. Thank God for the Coach House which rocks my socks.

+1 for Al's Diner. Pigs in a blanket (sausages wrapped in pancakes) are awsome and HUGE. Omlets are good too.

I love the miss america diner.been going there for twenty years.

Coach house has the best salad bar around but if we have to stick with JC i go with miss a.

Is Miss American clean? before reading the posts here, I've only encountered these few terse reviews:
http://search.cityguide.aol.com/north ... america-diner/v-110357469

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+1
for coach house!
amazing diner food and genuine diner "atmosphere".

you have to love their salad bar, as well :D

how come not one mention of the VIP?

maybe i am biased, as it's just around the block from me. the dinners are usually so-so, but the breakfasts are delicious. i recommend the 'waffle special'.

i've tried Al's before...that's the one on Communipaw, right? the open tuna melt sandwich was decent, but that was years ago.

if you're ever out in harrisson/east newark, do make a point to find the excellent Tops Diner.

of the jc ones, white manna, but if we could extend the boundaries by a few blocks then coach house hands down

I second the Colonette!

What was the Brownstone before it burned down?

Gotta go with Al's but can't neglect to mention the Colonette.

The 305.

Al?s diner-# 1 for breakfast and really good burgers

I live fairly close to Miss America, but I've never been. I like Al's Diner mostly because of memories of my pre-JC days when my friends and I use to stop there on the way home rom the city.

I have to say my favorite Jersey City Diners are the White Manna and the Miss America Diner. They're classic. My least favorite diners are the Brownstone Diner and the Flamingo. The Flamingo is not the worst but it could be so much better. They're both lame!

What's your favorite JC diner and least favorite?

The Tunnel Diner is real weird but cool. Not sure about that one.