You may or may not have heard that last Sunday was the Mecca’s last day in business until they hopefully relocate. I won’t feign a long history of loyalty to this neighborhood diner, but I know that there is a lot of history to the Mecca. I think it’s been around 70+ years, though in different locations at times.
The first time I dined at the Mecca was at the Lakewood location around December 2012. A friend of mine started working there and I had never even heard of the place. I decided to visit him and see what food he suggested. I instantly became hooked on their huge and delicious pancakes and thick cut bacon. The coffee was always delicious, though I honestly forget the name of the brand they use.
He continued to work there for several months and I would frequent, sometimes at dinner getting the chicken fried chicken – which quickly became a favorite.
The Mecca was also a good spot to go for a Saturday or Sunday brunch after a night on the town. I remember one such occasion about a month ago when I and two friends went to the Mecca to stuff ourselves with breakfast foods and lots of liquids. We must have had around 10 drinks on the table. I still feel a bit guilty about that. But the waiter was gracious about it. I don’t know, some people can rock the hangover look at Nick and Sam’s, but I liked the Mecca for down home comfort food to ail my previous night’s drinking woes.
That was another good thing about the diner – it always kind of seemed like you weren’t in Dallas. It really felt as though you were in some roadside stop where you could start up a lively conversation with some guy named Owen who’s been hauling hay bales for the last thirty years.
Aside from my friend who worked there for a time, the service was never extra special. In fact I recall some tongue-in-cheek posters hanging around the kitschy diner that essentially boiled down to a ‘like it or leave it’ mentality. But I liked it. So I kept going back.
And when I went on Sunday it was warm outside, but the back dining room windows had been propped open and a man was playing a saxophone to a decent sized group of diners. There was a long wait at the front of the door, but we managed to squeeze in. We were told there was a 10-15 minute wait, but we didn’t mind. Then we were offered to sit at the bar, which was rather perfect since we liked sitting up there anyway.
My dining companion, Marcella, and I each ordered coffee (of course) and some chicken fried chicken. The place was packed and we enjoyed some nice people watching and spoke some with the managers. Said we were sorry to see the place go and asked if they would relocate. Some people seemed optimistic that they would relocate, but others weren’t so sure. I don’t know, but according to their website, it seems they are planning to relocate in the future.
While the cashier was splitting our bill, I noticed a notepad laying on the glass counter. Each day they left it out for visitors to sign. It was dated April 27th and said, “Our last day”. Below were written some best wishes and many memories and people were even cursing the landlord for overcharging rent. I didn’t write anything. But I will miss this place, so best of luck!
Julie in Dallas 