Mustache Bill's, on the tip on Long Beach Island near the Barnegat Lighthouse, is in the running for a James Beard award (American Classics). So myself, my husband, and his best friend Ken trundled off on a windy Sunday to sample Bill's fare.
The diner has been there since the 1940's. It remains the same, small, filled with locals, a to-go coffee stand near the register. I guess the locals want their coffee without having to look at their watches every few minutes as the Starbucks crowd is want to do.
We started with pea soup. It was homemade and hearty. Just enough spice.
My husband, Gerard, and I had the meatloaf. It was the Blue-Plate Special. The potatoes were mighty lumpy. On one hand, it proved they were real. On the other hand, the lumps were distracting. I was hoping for creamy (picture my Giada smile as I say "creeeemy.")
The meatloaf itself was a classic green bell pepper, bread crumb mix that could have been more meat than crumb. The edges were hard and didn't soak up the tasty brown gravy. Disappointing.
Our friend had a great looking tuna sandwich and he said it tasted as good as it looked. The tuna was white and fresh.
The coleslaw was perfect, a traditional smooth mayo touch of vinegar dressing with crisp cabbage. You have had it before but it is always good when it tastes like this.
We don't know if we will go back even though the locals seemed happy, full, and chatty. Maybe it was just a bad day for the meatloaf. Maybe they didn't expect the Diner Diner.
Maybe we should have had the Mac n' Cheese. James Beard's favorite hamburger recipe (according to Sara Moulton) has meat, heavy cream, black pepper.
Take note Bill. A hamburger like that could never be hard around the edges.
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