West End Diner in Decatur, IN: Small-Town Goodness

After feasting at my bro-in-law's house in NW Ohio I swore I would never want to eat again, so the next morning I passed up the giant smorgasbord of leftovers in the kitchen and hit the road.  Thirty miles later, of course, there was a rumbly in me tumbly that could be heard over my vehicle's engine noise, music from the radio, and my cussing myself for not eating for free when I had the chance.   As if by magic the little West End Diner appeared, the glow from its "open" sign piercing the early morning gloom.

It is the kind of tidy small-town diner you've always imagined (well, that I've always imagined, anyway). with wood paneling and brick walls, cozy little booths, and a line of stools at a counter where all the grumpy old men customers always seem to sit.  I fittingly sat down at the counter and became grumpy because the stools are positioned too close to the counter, so that I had to do a kind of bow-legged spread to get where the stool was in a position to support my old butt. 

That, however, was the ONLY irritating thing about the place.  The wait staff was courteous if not outright friendly, and they were efficiently bustling about to keep everyone served.  I had the breakfast special full order of biscuits and gravy for $5.49 which included a drink, no less!  The coffee was okay but had a little bit of an alkaline flavor, maybe due to the water, maybe?  Biscuits were tasty but a little salty because they were homemade, and the gravy was a white milk gravy like you get at most Midwestern diners who've apparently never heard of bacon grease, but it had a decent amount of sausage bits AND some diced onions, which I've never had before-- they actually made it quite tasty.  

They had a big glass case on the wall with a sign over it listing the 15 types of pie they offer.  Out of all the exotic flavors I could have had, I chose Sugar Cream pie just so I could compare it to my bro-in-law's.  He began a long career in restaurant management by making pies at MCL cafeterias, so he has long been the piemaster of the family. I will say his pie was much lighter and fluffier than West End's, which was very dense like a heavy cheesecake.  Both tasted GREAT, though.  So, anyway, in case you missed it I got a full plate of biscuits and gravy, bottomles cup of coffee, and a piece of pie for $9.42, which made this $$ guy VERY happy.  As I left I put on my shades, looked at the cashier and did my best Arnold: "I'LL BE BAAACK."