Tarentum's Cycle Diner to serve food again in January

The Cycle Diner in Tarentum soon will be up and running again.

It will be renamed Clark’s Cycle Diner and open sometime in early January, according to John Clark, owner of Clark’s Diner in Lower Burrell, who will lease the space and manage the Tarentum restaurant.

“I want to keep it as close to the original as possible,” Clark said. “It’s a tradition there in Tarentum, and it’s a classic in that neighborhood.”

The Cycle Diner has been closed since April, when it sought new management after former manager Tommy Scanga was no longer able to run it because of an injury suffered in a car accident.

Clark plans to offer a menu similar to the one at Clark’s Diner, featuring all-day breakfast and lunch selections from salads to wraps and burgers. It will include daily specials such as meatloaf and liver and onions. He will do some dishes specifically for the new place, some with more spices than others. Other offerings include homemade sausages and sausage gravy, specialty burgers such as the steakhouse burger with bacon, mushrooms, an A-1 Steak Sauce/mayonnaise topping and Swiss cheese. They will have house-cut French fries.

Homemade soups will be available.

“We went to his place and it was spotless,” said George Gatto, whose family owns the diner. “His staff was nice and extremely organized. We are so excited for the diner to be open again.”

The parties agreed to a one-year lease with options, said Gatto, whose brother, Mark, handled the transaction.

George Gatto said there were others interested in taking over the railroad-style diner but he likes that Clark has experience in the restaurant business. He said the place is a perfect dining spot for customers of the nearby Gatto Cycle Shop and people from the community.

“We want the diner to thrive,” he said. “We didn’t want someone to come in and be here for three months and then have to close it again.”

Clark spent evenings the past few weeks cleaning and getting the place ready. He purchased some new equipment.

“We are open to making what the customer wants,” said Clark, who will cook the food in the open kitchen atmosphere. “If I have the ingredients, I will make it. We try to offer a personalized service. It’s about taking care of our customers.”

Handling the waitressing duties will be Mallory Shutt of Leechburg, who worked at Clark’s Diner for three years. Tanya Whitworth will manage the Lower Burrell location.

“I am excited and nervous at the same time,” Shutt said. “I really like the Cycle Diner and can’t wait to get started there. It will be fun to get to know the customers. At Clark’s Diner, I know a lot of the customers and what they drink and eat. That’s what sets us apart. That and the food is really good, too.”

Clark’s Cycle Diner is at 139 E. Sixth Ave., Tarentum.

Hours will be 7 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Tuesdays through Sundays.