You don’t need to have lived in Houston long to know that there is something old about Avalon Diner. Time stops when you walk its checkerboard floors and glance at the old framed photos hanging from the turquoise walls.
Avalon Diner is a seat-yourself affair. I first headed for an open booth … until I changed my mind and asked to move to the lunch counter for a classic diner experience. My server had already brought me water and a menu.
“Why? You don’t want me to serve you?,” he teased.
After I placed my order, he smiled and led me to a spot at the counter. It was a small glimpse into the hospitality that has made Avalon special for decades.
Avalon Diner has been open in its current space at 2417 Westheimer Road for 33 years, but its history goes back much further, as a different business in a different building.
Heidt Griner opened Avalon Drug Store in 1938 at the corner of Westheimer and Kirby, a block away from its present location. Curiously, the pharmacy also had a small 20-seat dining room and a soda fountain tucked in the back.
Bill Morris, Avalon’s lead pharmacist, purchased the store from the Griner family and renamed it Avalon Drug Company & Diner in 1972. The ownership again changed when Morris sold the diner part of the business to Coy and Bambilynn Ramsey in 1992. The two owners moved their businesses, yet still kept a common door to operate as neighbors.
CVS purchased the Avalon Drug Co. in 2008, and moved a half block away to 2910 Westheimer Road, the Houston Chronicle reported.Avalon Diner stayed put. Today, generations of diners still stop at the River Oaks restaurant for breakfast, lunch or both.
I sat next to a person at the counter who was busy with a stack of pancakes. Another person arrived for only a single menu item: a milkshake. I overheard the server saying “Two days in a row?”
That’s when I knew I made a good choice on also ordering the Famous Avalon Milkshake—a “Houston tradition for over 75 years.” Vanilla milkshakes often taste kind of bland, but there was a surprising sweetness to Avalon’s variety. It was so inviting that I couldn’t finish the other part of my meal: the 1938 Original Hamburger. It’s a fresh, no-nonsense sandwich loaded with lettuce, tomato, pickles, onions, mustard, mayonnaise, and a side of crinkle cut fries.
An added treat was getting a front-row seat to watch Avalon’s busy staff. My server was teaching a younger employee how to make fresh-squeezed lemonade, chatting with regulars and carrying plates back and forth. All the while, the sound of sizzling food from the kitchen reverberated throughout the restaurant.
As I left the restaurant, I thought about that milkshake again. What flavor would I try next? And then I realized, like so many of the older customers who’ve made Avalon Diner a part of their routine. They hooked me.
