Joe Morozin launched his first diner in 1940 at age 16. Over the next two decades he opened and closed more than a dozen restaurants before landing in Northeast Philadelphia in 1960, where he opened the Torresdale Diner at 8828 Frankford Avenue. The name changed to The Dining Car in 1976, and a fire destroyed the planned expansion next door in the late 1970s — which Morozin took as a sign to stay in the diner business. He ordered a new car from Swingle Diners, opened the current location at 8826 Frankford Avenue in 1980, then retired and handed the operation to his three children. It appeared in Season 2, Episode 10 of Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives — “Open 24/7,” aired January 13, 2008 — and was described by the Food Network as a 24/7 operation with a menu Guy couldn’t believe. Mashed named it the best diner in Pennsylvania. In 2024 the Morozin family retired and sold to new owners, who have maintained the operation.
Note: The Dining Car ended its 24-hour service in 2017 due to rising costs. It is no longer open around the clock but remains open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
Quick Facts
Restaurant: The Dining Car
City: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Cuisine: Classic Diner Fare
DDD Season: 2
DDD Episode: 10
Episode Title: Open 24/7
Original Air Date: January 13, 2008
Address: 8826 Frankford Ave., Philadelphia, PA 19136
Phone: 215-338-5113
Website: https://thediningcar.com/
Status: Open (no longer 24/7)
About The Dining Car
The Dining Car has been serving the Northeast Philadelphia neighborhood for over 60 years from the same Frankford Avenue address. The diner car structure itself — a genuine Swingle-built diner — is the heart of the place, expanded over the decades to accommodate a restaurant that at its peak was serving upward of 10,000 customers a week. The kitchen makes virtually everything from scratch, down to the maple syrup. The bakery produces custom cakes, pies, and breads daily. The menu is large enough to accommodate the full range of what a diner should do: breakfast, lunch, dinner, scrapple, crepes Florentine, Angus beef burgers on brioche, and early bird specials that draw regulars who have been coming since before the current owners’ parents were born.
What to Eat at The Dining Car
The Chicken Croquettes are the signature dish from the DDD episode — cone-shaped, scratch-made, served on mashed potatoes with chicken gravy, and the item that took off after the Food Network appearance. The kitchen was selling roughly 300 orders a week after the episode aired. The Creamed Chipped Beef on Toast, Scrapple, and Crepes Florentine represent the range of what this kitchen can do. The French Onion Soup has its own following. The bakery items — especially the homemade pies and Jewish coffee cake — are worth saving room for.
Plan Your Visit
The Dining Car is open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. It is no longer a 24-hour operation. Check the website or call for current hours.
Address: 8826 Frankford Ave., Philadelphia, PA 19136
Phone: 215-338-5113
Website: https://thediningcar.com/
Status: Open
Triple D Essentials
The Dining Car’s scratch cooking approach is exactly the kind of thing Guy Fieri celebrates in Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives: An All-American Road Trip with Recipes. Stream the episode on Amazon before you go.
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The Dining Car appeared in Season 2, Episode 10 of Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives, “Open 24/7,” originally aired January 13, 2008. The Dining Car ended 24-hour service in 2017. The Morozin family sold to new owners in 2024.