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All-American Fare, Soups Right Touch at Marietta Diner
Food Network's Guy Fieri at Marietta Fish Market

All-American Fare, Soups Right Touch at Marietta Diner
Why are diners so all-American? Is it the bandstand-style oldies? The flag-waving menu? The hustling wait staff? The smell of sizzling cheeseburgers and the sight of whipped cream and cherries on a banana split?

That's all a part of it, but to me, the most American things about the Marietta Diner include the Greek Owner, who lists spanikopita, moussaka and souvlaki among the patty melts and scrambled eggs.

It's the young Russian waitress, who snaps gum and sprints between orders, listens when she asks how you like your meal and nods appreciatively when you say it's all good.

It's the multihued diners, huddling in smoky wreaths, nursing cups of coffee long into the lonesome night, like Edward Hopper's famous diner painting "Nighthawks."

Most of all, it's the

glorious free trade of it all, a successful business built on good food and service, a place where just about anyone who's willing to work can find a toehold into the American dream. Even late on weeknights, the parking lot is jammed, and the crowd is about as interesting a cross section of humanity as you're likely to find in these parts.

They all know anyone who can't find something good to eat among the hundreds of items on this menu is beyond hope. But what sets the Marietta Diner apart from many others (including its turquoise-and-chrome clone, the Atlanta Diner, on North Druid Hills Road) is in addition to good fries, eggs and burgers, you are also going to find four housemade soups daily. Split pea I sampled was thick and velvety, topped with housemade croutons browned in olive oil.

Beyond your basic breakfast-anytime dishes, you'll find Athenian omelets, with souvlaki (grilled, marinated beef), tomato and feta cheese and thick country grits and a biscuit(flaky, but unfortunately, cold).

The real eye-opener was lamb chops special, a huge serving of tiny, well-cooked New Zealand lamb chops encircling mildly garlic mashed potatoes, their tips browned under the broiler, with a side of tender sauteed spinach. WIth the house salad (iceberg, cabbage, julienned carrots), it's a bargain at $18. You can even get a glass of wine with dinner, and the strawberry cheesecake is the fulffy variety topped with fresh-tasting berries.

This meal was so good, I'd be willing to try almost any of the specialties -- veal chops, portobello ravioli, shrimp Creole. But as most of this crowd knows, that's all just gravy. A diner is American Food 101, where you learn the basics. The Marietta Diner has them down pat.

Food Home-style cooking	Service Quick and to-the-point
Setting Shiny retro-style diner with lots of turquoise, flashing lights and old-time rock 'n'roll.	Hours Open 24 Hours Mondays-Sundays. Lunch Specials: 11:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. Monday-Thursdays. Dinner Specials: 4:00 p.m. - 2. a.m. Saturdays- Sundays.
Price Range Breakfast and lunch, $3-$10. Dinner entrees,$5-$20.	Credit Cards All major credit cards except Discover.
Recommended Dishes House-made soups, such as split pea; lamb chops with mashed potatoes; Athenian omelet; strawberry cheesecake.	Wine List Limited to about eight labels.
Reservations Accepted.	Children Kid's Menu.
Parking On-Site.	Wheelchair Policy Yes
Smoking Policy Only in designated areas	Noise Level Moderate

THE RESTAURANT SCOUT RATING SYSTEM

	No Forks Do not bother.		Good: Worth checking if you're in the area.
	Very Good Could become neighborhood fave.		Excellent: A destination no matter where you live.

Food Network's Guy Fieri at Marietta Fish Market
Guy Fieri, the fun and fun-loving host of three popular shows on Food Networ -- Guy's Big Bite, Guy Off the Hook and Diners, Drive-ins and Dives--was in town recently for the Metropolitan Cooking & Entertaining Show. While here, he shared the stage with other Food Network notables including The Neelys, Paula Deen and Tyler Florence, and he ate dinner on Saturday evening at the new Marietta Fish Market on Canton Road.

Gus Tselios, owner of the Fish Market, knows Fieri from a Diners, Drive-ins and Dives feature he did on the spanakopita and seafood paella at the Marietta Diner, one of four restaurants owned by Tselios.

Apparently lots of other people know him, too. Fieri was the focus of attention for scores of diners. He posed for photos with dozens of them, signed T-shirts and hats for some and even wished a few youngsters happy birthday. "He walked in and just said, 'wow!'" Tselios says. "He also toured the kitchen and was blown away by the size of it."

He also ate well. Tselios made sure of that, bringing the Food Network star and his six friends a variety of dishes including a three-pound steamed lobster; Alaskan king crab legs; shrimp and scallops Santorini made with a light red sauce, green olives and feta cheese; the Marietta Fish Market's popular Maryland lump crab cakes; oysters Rockefeller; seafood bisque; and the seafood paella Fieri sampled last time he was here. His favorite dish, however, was the Fish Market's signature grilled whole red snapper drizzled with extra virgin olive oil and fresh lemon juice and served on Greek-style roasted potatoes and sauteed spinach. "Guy has been all over the country," Tselios says, "and he told me this was one of the most incredible spreads of food he's ever tasted or seen."

Diners, Drive-ins and Dives is on Food Network on Mondays at 10 and 10:30 p.m., Fridays at 9 and 9:30 p.m. and Sundays at 3 and 3:30 p.m. The Marietta Fish Market is at 3185 Canton Road. The phone number is (770) 218-FISH.