Railcar Diner, 1929.

The corner of Tenth Avenue and 22nd Street is well known as the location of the Empire Diner. The 1946-built Fodero Dining Car Company structure is rendered in classic black, white, and chrome. A regular diner through the 1970s, the little corner spot has changed owners and levels of fanciness over the last few decades.

BUT, the Empire was not the first such railcar diner to occupy this site! Photographs taken in March of 1929 show a dining car festooned with flags, perhaps for a grand opening. The large signage advertised the so-called Perfect Diner No. 2 with the slogan, "This is the World's Finest Dining Car."