[I’m only covering the early years]
On Sunday October 13,2019 the revitalized Cambridge Diner sign was unveiled to a cheering throng of 300. The Country Gals invited the community to come and enjoy memories of the eatery that has anchored Main Street since 1935.
In the 1934 Christmas edition of the Washington County Post, Michael and Catherine Ryan, the new owners of the Covered Wagon Lunch, wished everyone a Merry Christmas. By Christmas 1935 the eatery had been renamed Cambridge Diner.
Their niece Rose Manning, a 1937 graduate of Cambridge High School, was one of the first waitresses. The original diner had no kitchen and seating for only 7. Meals were cooked in the house across the street.
In the mid 1940’s, Tom Dwyer, a NY State Trooper stationed in the Albany, passed through Cambridge on his way to his Chestertown assignment. His stops at the Cambridge Diner gave him good coffee, good donuts, and a wife (Mrs. Rose Dwyer).
In the 1950s all Cambridge businesses would close Wednesday at 1pm for a mid-week break. Local folk lore tells of a Wednesday afternoon poker game at the Diner. Among the players was our Police Chief (likely Charlie Cantwell).
If a visitor ever stops you asking, “Where’s the Country Gals café?”, just say
- “It’s right next to where Joe Vitello had his barber shop”.
- If they look puzzled, try saying “it’s across the street from where Everett Ashworth had the Agway store”.
- Still puzzled? Try “it’s across from where Jim and Sally King had their bakery.
- And if all else fails, simply say “just look for the Cambridge Diner sign”