Tiny eatery is one of three left in the state, and it has a personality all its own

RUMFORD First-timers to the Deluxe Diner try to open the door by pushing in. But soon, they realize that just doesn’t work. The door must be slid open, and if someone is a little too tall, he must duck his head because the door is shorter than usual, too.

The Deluxe Diner, a tiny restaurant a mere 10-feet wide tucked unobtrusively off the lower end of Oxford Avenue, is one of only three Worcester dining-car diners remaining in the state.

And this little bit of history is also an answer to owner Connie Arsenault’s search to find a job that lasts.

Arsenault has been a waitress for more than 11 years.

“I’d had enough of restaurants closing. So I thought if I bought it, I’d have control,” she said Wednesday morning as some of the regulars came pouring into the 16-seat diner.

Built in 1928, Arsenault said the tiny dining car was taken by rail to Essex Avenue in Rumford. From there, it was pulled up the hill to its Oxford Avenue site by a team of horses for owner Arthur Gastonguay. There, a crew hand-dug the cellar, then placed the dining car atop it.

“I come down here and think about someone hand digging,” she said as she pointed to the ceiling and the walls of the cellar.

The dining car, with the Miss Portland Diner and a diner in Gardiner as the only others in the state, has been owned by a series of people over the years.

Arsenault had worked for former owners Pete and Jeanie Duguay for about a year when Pete decided to close it. That’s when she decided to give it a try.

One of her former bosses, Albert Pomerleau, owner of the now-defunct Freddie’s Restaurant, helped her get organized during the first nine months.

“I got to be my previous boss’s boss,” she laughed.

Her regulars are many, and pleased to see her as they slide onto one of the maroon vinyl covered silver stools.

“I like the customers and we have a good time. We give them the floor show through our banter,” she said.

Ed Gallant, a regular for nearly a decade, clearly enjoys his daily visits.

“I feel right at home. They are friendly and the food is good, and we like to tease each other,” he smiled.

When Gallant hadn’t taken his usual seat for several days, Arsenault and waitresses Tammy Philbrick and Krystal Korhonen, decided to find out why. He was in the local hospital so they brought him his coffee.

“We worry if he misses. We have a few others. We go and check on them,” said Arsenault.

It’s that homey feeling that Gerry Arsenault likes, too.

“I invite my friends, too. It’s so personable and the food is wonderful. I come in every morning and sometimes for lunch, too,” said the regular customer of 12 years.

Chances are Arsenault, or one of the waitresses, will know what to serve someone as soon as they walk through the green, wooden door.

She knows what they like and what they don’t.

Soon after she bought the diner, Arsenault decided to add salads to the lunch menu. But when the end of the day came-somewhere between noon and 1:30 p.m. – she found she had to throw awa most of the greens.

“Salads didn’t work. People want grease – grease is our friend,” she said.

When she bought the diner, she bought a new grill, fryer and cabinets, but many of the original pieces, such as the brass cabinet handles, the silver range hood made from the same material that Rolls Royce hood ornaments are made from, and the beige-and-green tile on the floor and walls are still there, adding to the authenticity.

Korhonen has been working at the diner off and on for about four years.

“I flirt with the older men, It’s fun. We get all embarrassed and pink-cheeked,” she said.

Philbrick also had worked at Freddie’s until it closed. She chats with the customers as she’s making home fries or pouring coffee.

“I like the good-natured banter,” she said.

Arsenault has always liked history. Now she has a piece of her own. She scoured newspaper articles and photographs at the Rumford Historical Society, made copies, then created a collage of the diner’s history the customers can read when they come in for their coffee, eggs, or lunch.

One thing she wants to do as time goes on is return the exterior of the diner to its original sliver.

“And maybe we’ll also have dumpster-side dining,” she laughed as she pointed to the small space between the outside kitchen door and the alley.

Arsenault, who suffers from multiple sclerosis, often becomes fatigued,, but her good-naturedness and love of her job gets her through the day.

For the mother of four, the youngest of whom is 13, the diner is special.

“This is like my new baby,” she said.

The diner is opened 5 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., Monday-Friday, 5 a.m. to 1 p.m., Saturdays, and 6 a.m. to 12 noon on Sundays.