Paterson’s last diner officially closes as owners retire after 44 years
The owners say that what they will miss the most is the customers that they served.
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The last diner in Paterson has officially closed. Nicholas Diner served its last meals Wednesday as city leaders and longtime customers gathered for a last lunch.
Customer Fred Rucci says that he had to be there on the last day. He had been eating at Nicholas Diner for 15 years.
"The family atmosphere. The food is great. Everybody knows Nick, and everybody knows Georgia,” he says
Diner owners Nick and Georgia Doukas are retiring after 44 years in business. This was Paterson's oldest diner - and it was also its last.
“I’m very sad because I feel like I’m losing my family, you know?” says Georgia Doukas.
She says that she will miss the people she served the most.
“Paterson was nice to us. We don’t have no complaints. We love Paterson,” she says.
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Mayor Andre Sayegh honored the diner and the Doukas family on the last day.
"Every Saturday I came here, for not only the pancakes and the Greek omelet, but a cup of coffee,” the mayor says. “I have to go somewhere else, and so will so many others, and that's the saddest part of it."
Sayegh says that while it is a sad day for Paterson, he is optimistic that the city won’t be without a diner for long.
"It's just a part of our culture. It's enriched in what we do every day. It's a Jersey thing. And it's a Paterson thing, too,” he says.
Sayegh says the city is working with several initiatives to bring new restaurants to Paterson.
He says that there are plans to bring back Paterson Restaurant Week this September after it first launched last year.
