LIST OF MAJOR DINER MANUFACTURES
What is a diner?  Some insist that the only structure that should have the distinction of a diner is one that is built in a factory and trucked to its operating site.  Then there are others who claim that any restaurant which offers counter seating and serves breakfast anytime is a diner.  I am neither of these people.  My defininition of a a diner, and this is only my opinion and is not to be stomping on any one's claim to diner status, is a roadside restaurant which is either built in a factory, or one which is built on site to resemble a prefab diner, with a design which is both functional and flashy.  Shiny materials, including stainless steel, porcelin, glass, and tile, are used generously on the exterior and interior.  The counter occupies a significant portion of the inside and is augmented by seats which swivel and are bolted to the floor.  Some diners are converted railroad or trolley cars, but most were built as stationary entities and never road the rails.  This is not to say that may diner stylings aren't borrowed from railroad dining cars.  The word "diner" is in fact derived from "dining car."
 
There have been dozens of companies which have manufactured diners over the years.  A few of these are still in business.  A diner buff will pride him/ herself in being able to instantly identify the manufacturer of any diner he/she spots.  There are probably more noble skills to obtain, but the average American has a significant amount of time to waste on such trivialities.  Some memorize batting averages, some watch Melrose Place, others travel thousands of miles around the country in search of the diner experience and the ultimate diner photograph.  To each his own...

If you aspire to identify diners like a pro, you will definately want to read this list of major diner manufactures which I have prepared for a fine and noble person such as yourself:

Jerry O'Mahony, Inc, Elizabeth, NJ, 1913-1956, built many different style diners and was a leader in diner production for several decades.  The oldest surviving O'Mahony's include  Ted's Diner in Milford, Mass and  Max's Grill in Harrison New Jersey.  Both feature barrel roofs, bright red porcelin exeriors, and cream-colored lettering.   Mickey's Dining Car , c. 1937, in St. Paul, Minnesota, is the only O'Mahony listed on the National Register of Historic Places and features a railroad-car-like monitor roof.  Following the trend of other diner builders, O'Mahony introduced stainless steel exteriors in the late 1940's which predominated until the company went out of business in 1956.  In the early 50's, several larger double-unit O'Mahony's were produced including the L-shaped Harris Diner  in East Orange, New Jersey.  One of the last diners built by this manufacturer was the exceptionally long  Mayfair Diner in Northeast Philadelphia.

Worcester Lunch Car Company, Worcester, MA, 1906-1961, for the most part built a small, handcrafted diner with a porcelin exterior and hardwood interior.  Many Worcesters feature gothic lettering painted on the porcelin front panels and colorfully striped awnings. The  Boulevard Diner and the  Miss Worcester Diner, both located in the city of Worcester, Mass, are fine examples,  as is the colorful Moran Square Diner in Fitchburg, Mass, which sports unusual 9-pane windows and raised wood panels at one end.  Worcester interiors were often adorned with marble countertops, stainless steel panels shaped into starburst patterns, and hardwood booths as you can see in  Lamy's Diner now located inside the Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn, Michigan. The craftmanship of Worcester diners is unsurpassed.  It is no wonder that they have become a favorite subject of many artists.

Silk City Diners (Paterson Vehicle Company), Paterson, NJ, 1927-1964, built a fine-crafted diner in a variety of styles .  Exteriors typically used a combination of stainless steel and porcelin in many different color schemes and often displayed the diner's name on a large horizontal porcelin stripe. Two Silk City diners are listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the Clarksville Diner in Decorah, Iowa, and the Village Diner in Red Hook, New York.  All Silk City's that I have seen which were built before the mid-50's, have a similar monitor style roof.  Later Silk City's feature a flat roofline and an unusually large vestibule, as does the     Martindale Chief Diner  located just off the Taconic Parkway in upstate New York.
 
Paramount Diners, Oakland, NJ, 1932-present, was the first manufacturer to introduce an all-stainless-steel exterior.  Paramount diners featured a distinctive curved roofline, and rounded glass block corners.  Many of its earlier diners, such as  White Manna Hamburgers in Hackensack, New Jersey, are adorned with a "wainscoating" of beveled vertical porcelin panels.  In the mid-40's, Paramount introduced the all-stainless exterior.  Rosie's Diner now in Rockford, Michigan is a glistening example.

Mountain View Diners, Singac, NJ, 1939-1957, was a very aggressive marketer in the early 1950's, shipping diners to buyers all over the country.  Their trademark was a unique corner detail know as the "cowcatcher" which can be seen on the Mineola Diner in Mineola, New York and  O'Rourke's in Middletown, Connecticut, both built in 1946.
 
Fodero Dining Car Company, Bloomfield, NJ, 1933-1981, built many exceptional diners through out its long history.  Perhaps the most famous Fodero is the 1946  Empire Diner in Manhattan.  Fodero built some noteably large diners in the 50's including the Ingleside Diner in Thorndale, Pennsylvania.

DeRaffle Manufacturing Company, New Rochelle, NY, 1933-present, is currently the largest surviving diner manufacturer.   Al Mac's Diner in Fall River, Mass, shows off the company's superb stainless steel work and displays one of most magnificent neon signs I have ever seen.  DeRaffle was one of a few manufacturers to build diners in the "space-age" style.  In the  Parkway Diner in Stamford, Connecticut, we see a stainless steel diner which looks much like the companies earlier models, except for the vestibule, which is encircled by a futuristic flared overhang with recessed lighting.  Later DeRaffle's, such as  New Harvest Natural Foods in Suffern, New York and the Silver Star Diner in Allentown, Pennsylvania, exhibit more radical futuristic stying.

Kullman Industries, Inc., Avenel, NJ, 1927-Present, was also a builder of space-age style diners.  The 1964 Market Diner in Manhattan with its zig-zag roofline exemplifies the genre.  In its earlier history, Kullman produced a great variety of diner styles, and was certainly one of the undisputed masters of stainless.  Pay a visit to the 1940's Cutchogue Diner on the Northern fork of Long Island if you have any doubts.

Valentine Manufacturing Company, Wichita, KS, 1938-1974, in its time was the only signifcant diner manufacturer outside the Northeast.  Valentine built a small, boxy diner which was radically different than any other manufacurer's.  Many Valentines, such as  Suzie Q's Cafe in Mason City, Iowa, sport a take out window.

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