By Michael Barbieri***New York is BACK!! NYC has slowly but surely come back to life! Tourists are returning, Broadway shows have begun regular performances again—albeit with Covid precautions, and one of the city’s big tourist attractions has finally reopened… Ellen’s Stardust Diner is back!!
Ellen’s Stardust Diner is a retro 1950s-style diner featuring amazingly talented, Broadway caliber singing servers known as the Stardusters. Ellen’s attempted a reopening on Halloween of 2020, but unfortunately, there was a second wave of Covid cases, so the city pulled the plug on indoor dining and the diner had to close once again. Now, thankfully, with the advent of the Covid vaccine and subsequent safety protocols, restaurants have returned as well. On Sunday, November 14th, Ellen’s hosted a VIP reopening and I was invited!
Everyone needed to show proof of vaccination in order to attend, but that was no problem for anyone that night, so the place was packed. The Stardusters, whom are terrific to begin with, were in exceptional form! As soon as I sat down, Jadelyn, a lovely young lady, favored us with “I Could’ve Da
nced All Night,” which ended with a stunning coloratura high note! My own handsome, talented server, James, soon followed with his crystal clear rendition of “Out There,” from Disney’s The Hunchback of Notre Dame. Morgan gave us Stevie Wonder’s “Don’t You Worry ‘bout a Thing,” Liz belted out “Tomorrow,” from Annie, Ann showed off her pipes with “I Love You, I Do,” from the film of Dreamgirls, and Paul demonstrated his strong falsetto range with the Temptations’ “My Girl!”
During a break in the fabulous entertainment, Ellen Hart Sturm, the owner of this iconic diner, spoke to the crowd, welcoming us and thanking us for our loyalty and patronage—a nicely heartfelt speech. Scott Barbarino, the Artistic Director of Ellen’s, then sang one of his best-known retro hits, Dean Martin’s “Ain’t That a Kick in the Head?” In a particularly sweet moment, Scott sang the line ‘I hugged her and she hugged back,’ at which point, he gave Ellen a little hug… and of course, she hugged him back.
The singing continued. We sang along with a fun Abba medley, we heard Barry Manilow’s “Mandy,” Billy Joel’s “Movin’ Out” and “Part of Your World,” from The Little Mermaid. The Stardusters were everywhere that night. Josh (aka Chachi) perched himself up in the balcony and gave us Elton John’s “I’m Still Standing,” and James returned with “Music of the Night,” from The Phantom of the Opera. For this number, he began on the lower dining level and finished by serenading us from above! Liz, Morgan and Ann joined forces to deliver a stunning version of Heart’s hit, “Alone,” which featured incredible high notes and tight harmonies and Liz and Paul duetted on Lady Gaga’s Oscar winning “Shallow.” Fairly late in the evening, James got up to sing once more and performed a gorgeous “Bring Him Home,” from Les Miserables. Here, he went from an amazing tenor belt to a beautiful falsetto at the end.
Ellen’s is known internationally for their singing servers, but I was there to review the food as well. I tried a variety of offerings from various sections of the menu, so as to give readers a little idea of what to expect.
I started with the Mozzarella Triangles—bites of the mild cheese, coated in seasoned bread crumbs, deep fried and served with a marinara dipping sauce. The cheese triangles themselves were crispy and tasty, but unfortunately, the marinara needed a touch of salt and a hit of oregano to give it a little “oomph.” I moved on to the Spinach Salad—delicious, fresh spinach tossed with biting red onion, sweet dried cranberries and earthy, crunchy toasted walnuts, dressed in a beautifully acidic sherry vinaigrette and topped with dollops of fried goat cheese. When I got a bit of every ingredient in one forkful, it made for a perfect bite!
From the Blue Plates section, I sampled the Shrimp Scampi—sautéed shrimp in a garlic and white wine sauce, served over spaghetti. The shrimp were nicely cooked and the pasta was done to a perfect al dente consistency. This garlicky dish also had a touch of spice to add just the right amount of heat. Excellent! I wanted to try one of Ellen’s Classic Sandwiches, so I ordered the Beyond Burrito. 
Made with crumbled and seasoned Beyond Meat (the meatless beef substitute), shredded cheese, rice and beans, all wrapped in a flour tortilla and served with a mild salsa, this was one of my favorite selections of the evening! There was a nice smokiness to the Beyond Meat and the sandwich itself had the texture that one expects from a proper burrito, making it a good vegetarian alternative. The next selection was quite possibly the best dish I sampled all night—the Short Rib Grilled Cheese Sandwich. This was Ellen’s classic grilled cheese with a nice helping of braised short rib of beef and a bit of peppery arugula tucked inside. Wow! The short rib was unbelievably tender and flavorful and there was a tanginess to the sandwich that made it irresistible and very, very craveable! I’ll definitely be ordering that again!
Being a diner, Ellen’s is also known for its burgers. I decided to try the Walter Cronkite Burger, made with Kobe beef and served with lettuce, tomato and pickles. The burger arrived looking a little dry and overdone, but the appearance was deceiving. From the first bite, it was melt-in-your-mouth tender, juicy and beefy. It tasted the way I remember great burgers tasting when I was a kid. Finally, I just had to try dessert, so I ordered their Carrot Cake. Lightly spiced and layered with a malted cream cheese icing, the cake was good—not great, not really a standout, but still a good, reliable way to end the meal.
A few days after the party, I found myself walking down Broadway with a friend and we passed the diner. As it had been pre-pandemic, there was a line of tourists stretching down the sidewalk, waiting eagerly to get into Ellen’s. And seeing a crowd of happy people inside the restaurant did my heart good!
If you’ve never been to Ellen’s, go! Go for the singers! Go for the food! Go because it’s truly an only-in-New-York experience! Yes, Ellen’s Stardust Diner is definitely back and I know I’ll be back again soon!
Leave a Reply