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Boston Restaurant Review – “Dear Diner”: S&S Deli in Inman Square (7/10)

It’s been a staple since 1919, serving up the Cambridge locals with every, and all kinds of deli treats.  So it’s hard to imagine the food being any thing less then good.  While considered a deli and not a diner, on Sunday mornings they invite the diner crowd with open arms making them a prime target for a “Dear Diner,” review.  Yes, I’ve already been, and yes, I already know I enjoy their food.  But if you’re familiar with our past posts, you know that the food is only half of the diner experience.

This will be the first “Dear Diner,” post with an official scale.  The scale is 1 to 10 with a 10 being the best.  The key factors for each grade are as follows (ordered in importance):

• Food
• Service
• Atmosphere

Let’s begin…

The one noticeable flaw, in my opinion, about the S&S is the size.  When I want to head to a local diner the last thing I want the aurora to feel like is Denny’s.  But that’s exactly the feeling you get after you walk past the third large seating area on the way to your table.  To their credit, they do attract quite a crowd, especially on a Sunday morning.

As we took our seat next to a family celebrating grandpa’s birthday with baby Thomas practically drooling in our laps, I noticed all the old black and white photos hanging on the wall.  I’m a fan of old pictures when a place such as the S&S has been around for many years.  Seeing the old photos of Inman Square provide an interesting contrast to our immediate surroundings.  These images bring about a sense of community and family.  Goes well with your diner experience.

As you gaze down at the menu you may notice that this is not your average diner fare.  The average plate is $8, this is before you add on any sides or coffee.  I’m perfectly all right with this, it just means the food and serving better be up to high-end diner standards.  I ordered the French Eggs – A croissant that’s warmed on the griddle with scrambled eggs, Canadian bacon (better be from Quebec), home fries and cup of fresh fruit.  The fruit comes with just about every dish so all you seasonal nuts need not apply.  While I love eating seasonal food, sometimes a sweet piece of fruit is just what the doctor ordered on a crisp Sunday morning in New England.  Adrian got the Quiche Lorraine that is definitely one of the better deals on the menu.

Our food came out just as we were sipping down our second freshened up cup of coffee.  As you know, service plays another key role in the diner grading system.  S&S definitely has a “family run” type of atmosphere.  But again, because the place is so large you lose some of this appeal.  Our waiter was also not very chatty.  I typically like my diner staff to have some character and ours lacked this element.  But to his credit, he was on top of our coffee and made sure our food came out on time.

Finally, the food.  Per usual, the S&S fare is one of the finer breakfasts in the greater Cambridge area.  I especially enjoy their potatoes.  While mine were slightly over mooshed – due of course to over boiling as my esteemed friend Kevin so astutely pointed out – the grilled onions give them an awesome kick that had me practically wiping them off the plate before I even touched my croissant sandwich.  As for the sandwich, it was good, but that’s about all.  It needs some sharp cheddar cheese, or, since it’s called the French Eggs, a nice slab of gruyere to fuse the egg and bacon together.  Otherwise the flavor was mostly pronounced by the sweetness of the grilled croissant.

In the end, I give S&S a 7 out 10 on the “Dear Diner,” scale.  The food is worth the price tag but the atmosphere and lack of diner vibe brings it down a notch.

Tags: cambridge, diner, review, s&s