Jaunted

Though I’d stuffed myself at breakfast in preparation for a long travel day--and was definitely not shopping for lunch two hours later--I had to peek inside. All chrome and barstools, booths and milkshakes, Beauty’s is a classic old-school diner. My husband and I were headed out to visit Mont Royal, but hopped off the bus on the way back down, intending to stop in for a coffee.

The proprietor, the ancient Monsieur Hymie, greeted us with the now-familiar “Bonjour-hi,” and pointed us to a tiny booth. The monsieur carefully orchestrates his diner, from who gets the table with the highchair to making sure his "girls" are taking care of customers with appropriate speed.

While we gave up on the coffee idea and ordered breakfast part two, Mr. Hymie swiveled back and forth on his squeaky first stool, greeting customers and keeping a close eye on all the activity. Funny to think this elderly gent was once nicknamed Beauty in his bowling league, the origin of the diner’s name, which was originally called something much less memorable.

I tucked into my croque legume--finally, a croque monsieur for vegetarians!--a bit of butternut squash soup and a fountain Coke, wishing we didn’t have to rush back to the hotel to get ready to fly home. But then again, Mr. Hymie probably wouldn’t stand for us hogging a table at prime lunch time.

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[Photos: Dana McMahan]