Here are two more examples of a trolley and rail car turned into diners that feature red and white/50s design. I didn't see any "safe" pix to snag, so sadly you'll have to click for the visuals.
Dudie's Diner, Tupelo, MS
This diner was built from a 1923 St. Louis lightweight car that saw service as Memphis Street Railway #630. Depending on the source, it was converted to a restaurant in 1945 or 47; and is the focal point for a hamburger festival at the museum where it now resides:
Dudie's Diner earlier more prototypical look, Blog pix, Google image hits (lots of pix), and the Oren Dunn City of Tupelo Museum website (caution: this link wasn't up before).
50s Train Diner, Murdo, South Dakota
Self-consciously called the "50s Train Diner" and sometimes the "Sante Fe Train Diner", this attraction in 1880 Town, SD is built around a 1950s Sante Fe train that ran between Chicago and California. It was moved to this site in 1982. The fifties memorabilia and red and white Coca-Cola sign leave little to the imagination regarding where the design inspiration came from. The website says the restrooms are in the Milwaukee station next door:
Nice pix and Coca-Cola sign and Official 1880 Town website
Valentine Diners, Kansas
In addition to the association with Coca-Cola and checkered picnic table cloths, the red and white color motif was found inside real manufactured diner buildings like Baby's Diner in State College, PA that kicked off this post. Who knows which came first? In the 1940s, one actual diner manufacturer created small restaurant buildings whose exteriors were painted in bright red and white. Valentine Diners competed with big diner manufacturers like Worcester in MA and Silk City in NJ. In their spiffy paint, these buildings bucked the east coast tradition -- Valentine Diners was based in Kansas and many of their buildings were found in the west and mid-west. These are really awesome buildings and would look great on a layout. They, however, look like buildings not rail cars or moderne engines. Google Image search (lots of pix)
This post desperately needs some photos, so here they are. Following is a tip from TRRR on converting your layout space into a 50s diner, complete with repurposed rail car:
Next is a fun cookbook that includes recipes and CDs to play while you cook or dine. In spite of its name, it is not related to the California streamliner diner in the previous post. It does however, showcase the black and white checkerboard shown on dinner plates and train sides in the prior post:
And lastly, in keeping with the season (seasonings?), here is Donder's Diner featured in who-knows-what-scale:
Speaking of red and white, Santa used to sit on the left-most stool but he fell behind the counter, and being ... er ... somewhat corpulent got wedged back there. He does, however, send his warmest "Ho, ho, ho" and hopes to free himself in time for the Big Day of train riding with Donder and friends:
Tomlinson Run Railroad (on vacation!)
