End of an Era: John’s Country Kitchen will close at the end of the month

John and Margaret Margiotis opened the diner back in 1977, and today it’s run by their son Jimmy who cracks jokes and chats with customers while he cooks.

“So this is it, Jimmy?” a man shouts across the counter as he walks in to place a to-go order.

“Yep, end of the month,” Jimmy responds from his post at the griddle, slinging short order eggs and biscuits for a row of regulars posted up at the counter.

It’s a scene from another time, largely unchanged since it was under John’s management. Yellowed newspaper clippings, a handwritten shift calendar, locals sliding into booths to linger at least one more time before it’s gone.

The menu is simple and straightforward–breakfast and lunch, cash only. For about $5 you can get a breakfast plate–various combinations of eggs and meat and hotcakes or pork brains if you’re feeling adventurous.

I got a black coffee and two plain biscuits, much to the waitress’s dismay. “You sure that’s it?”

And yes, that was it. I didn’t want to play writer or review the food or interview anybody. I just wanted to experience it as a neighbor, to say I went when I had the chance.

There is nothing else quite like John’s in Charlotte and in a few weeks it will be gone. So get in while you can, wish them well and wait to see what takes its place. It will, no doubt, be met with much resistance from locals who prefer to hold tight to this piece of Charlotte history.