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 A lot of things have changed in Limerick Township over the years, especially with the explosive growth of the past couple decades. But amid the hundreds of new homes and dozens of new businesses, one has stood fast for 50 years.
Limerick Diner celebrated its 50th birthday in December. Diner owners Al and Deb Herr were recognized at the Spring-Ford Chamber of Commerce’s January breakfast, held at the Ridge Pike eatery.
Presenting a plaque to the Herrs, chamber president Tim Canfield described the diner as “Limerick’s best-known landmark.”
Edward “Butch” and Kathryn “Kay” Moore opened the diner on Dec. 26, 1956. The diner originally was across the street, on the north side of Ridge Pike, between the current locations of Williams Pontiac and Ambler Savings Bank.
According to Al Herr, prior to opening the restaurant, Butch leased and operated a gas station on the corner. He and his employees were dissatisfied with the food at the restaurant next door when they went there to eat. Kay had worked as a waitress in Pottstown and Norristown, Herr reflected, so she said, “Why don’t we just buy it,”
So the Moores bought the restaurant, cleaned it up and opened the new Limerick Diner. According to Herr, Kay said not one piece of “china,” not one plate, cup, saucer or anything was not chipped when they bought the restaurant. It took six months to get the diner ready to open, he said.
Eventually the Moores ran out of space and in 1969 bought the current property. On Jan. 5, 1970, Limerick Diner opened at is present location. In 1992, the east end dining room was added and the whole restaurant and kitchen were refurbished, Herr recalled.
Other than the move across the street and the expansion, the diner has changed little through the years. “We still pride ourself in homecooked meals. You won’t find an ounce of instant potatoes here,” Herr remarked.
In fact, he said, a microwave was put into the kitchen for the first time just four years ago. The diner serves “homestyle, comfort food, Pennsylvania Dutch kind of cooking,” Herr noted.
Many of the employees have also worked at the diner for a long time, Herr reflected. Some of the women who work on dayshift have been at the diner since they graduated from high school in 1968, ’69 or ’70, he added.
Herr has been a part of the diner for 23 years. His wife, Deb, has been at the diner all her life, as she was only six months old when the diner opened. Although her dad is now retired, her mom still actively manages the restaurant.
“I can remember my parents taking me to the diner as a little boy, across the street,” Herr recalled with a laugh. “I actually knew Deb’s dad before I knew her.”
Herr said Deb probably began helping in the diner as a young girl, most likely with peeling potatoes or some such task. She, along with her mother, “is one of the few people in here that can do every job in this restaurant,” Herr said. “I can’t. She can.”
Mostly Deb works in food prep and menu selection. Her husband handles the behind-the-scenes work and opens the diner every morning. He arrives at work by 4:30 to 4:45 a.m. every day to have the diner ready to open by 6.
Opening at 6 a.m. is one of the few changes the diner has made through the years. In October 2005, Herr said, they closed the third shift. Before that, the diner was open 24 hours a day, and was only closed on New Year’s Eve and Christmas day. Those are still the only two days the diner closes, he added.
The other big change in the diner happened a few years before that. “We went smokefree five years ago,” Herr said. Although a few smokers were not happy with the change, “we had a lot more positive comments than negative,” he noted.
The secret to the diner’s five decades of success, he said, is loyal customers and loyal, faithful employees. Some customers eat at the diner two or three times a day, every day of the week, Herr said. “They’re upset when we’re closed for Christmas,” he laughed.
According to Herr, many of the customers are middle age to retired. However, he said, with the changing demographics of the area, the restaurant is introducing some new items to attract the younger diners, especially families.
“I see us trying to keep pace with the changing needs and wants of our customers,” he said of the future.
“It’s a fun business,” he reflected. “It’s neat … the customers. We’ve seen an awful lot of customers. They’re neat people. It’s so neat to meet the people and make those relationships. It’s really nice.”
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