Mickey's Diner is now open in St. Paul

At Mickey's Diner, the hash browns are chopped up, the pancake batter is mixed, and the malt powder is ready. After five long years, the diner, a downtown St. Paul landmark since 1939, is open again.

“I don’t know if you can make it any bigger than it already is. But we hope,” said co-manager Sam Hashish.

It is currently in a soft opening phase. “We don’t want to come under pressure until we know everything is working,” he said. “Everything is going well now.”

The menu looks the same but the laminate is new. America's favorite all-day meal ($12.99) still features eggs made your way, your choice of toast, hand-chopped hash browns and a choice of meats. What's different are the meat dishes: Mickey's menu now features beef bacon and other kosher and halal options. There's also a huge tray of baklava and other honey-sweetened treats.

This is all part of the menu expansion that Hashish hopes will attract even more fans and a new generation of Mickey's lovers.

“We have a latte machine and a new coffee menu. We will also have a lot more vegetable options. We’re still working on what that menu will look like and we’ll have a grand opening soon,” he said.

Mickey Crimmons and Bert Mattson opened Mickey's Diner in 1939 in an Art Deco style inspired by railroad dining cars. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1983 and has appeared in several Hollywood films, from “Jingle All the Way” to “A Prairie Home Companion.” It operated 24 hours a day until the pandemic forced its closure in 2020.

For now, the dining car opens at 7 a.m. every day and serves until 8 or 9 p.m., depending on how things are going. And this is important: The restaurant, which once only accepted cash payments, now accepts credit cards.