WELCOME TO THE RED ROSE DINER

{RED ROSE MENU}
WELCOME TO THE RED ROSE DINER
{Some photos to help tell Gordon's story.} {Press for GUEST BOOK} {MORE PHOTOS}
{FAVORITE LINKS} GORDON'S ART PAGE Photo Ms. Pat Tindall's Water Color Art Pat Tindall's Art Exhibit I Loving Memory of Gordon's Dad

This site is dedicated to the amazing Gordon C. Tindall

.The Red Rose Diner is the culmination of the dream of a man who had to both be with the people and to serve them. This is Gordon's ministry.... looking for the good in everyone and to giving them all encouragement.

To see a video of Gordon and Betty in action go to:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TVZZZ-SwN5s

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=whR9MfEJprg

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6GbGSiUzFK0

A WARM WELCOME

Thank you for visiting this classic diner which transports us all back to a day when life was sampler , where things were either white or black, and everything was American as apple pie.. Things have changed since the diner reigned supreme. Fast food franchisees with promotional toys and gimmicks line our streets and malls, but the classic diner will always bring a sense of calm and a smile to all of those who can remember when. Gordon Tindal was the oldest of three children and grew up on a truck farm in Dutchneck, near Grove Mills where the famous Orson Wells "War of the Worlds" factitiously too place . They owned about 125 acres and rented another 90 to grow their crops. Gordon also took a very crazy ride in their crop sprayers helicopter. And went with the pilot to Florida to fight ARMY WORMS! He helped his father, and accomplished pilot to grow tomatoes for Campbell Soup and potatoes for WISE Potato chips. Gordon was a natural at basketball and pool and excelled at both! He majored in Agriculture at the School of Engineering Technologies on the Farmingdale State University of New York, 2350 Broad hollow Road, Farmingdale, NY and at Merced College in Merced ,California. He coached a very successful basketball team out there.

Gordon right out of the kitchen!
Phone in your order at 265-7203

Below is the very beautiful Cortney, Gordon's daughter. She studied art in college and appreciates the design work by Valerie's daughter Josie that went into the RED ROSE DINER T-Shirt. you can order one of these classics for $12.50 plus shipping costs. It is a good way to show your support for this classic diner.
You can contact the Red Rose Diner at:
526 Main Street
Towanda, Pa. 18848
(750) 265-7203

GORDON THE MAN!

Gordon worked on the Rail Road both as a cook and line worker.. Sometimes living in his own 12 Foot 1962 Shasta trailer. Besides being a very talented cook, he was quite a motor head and became a successful drag racer...... Setting class records in the 1/4 mile. at Cecil County Dragway ( elevation 320 ft) in Rising Sun, Maryland. He ran 98.14 MPH or 13.89 seconds in N Stock Automatic. Gordon also inherited his (Patricia T )mother’s artistic talents and has developed a unique style of painting and drawing.

E-MAIL GORDON!

More about Gordon's Diners

The Red Rose Diner (#1215)was built in New Rochelle, NY by Patrick.J. Tierney Sons, Inc. in 1927. Gordon found the diner in Stroudsburg PA in 1998 and moved it to Lancaster for restoration, about 110 miles away. Lancaster, Pennsylvania, incorporates the red rose as its mascot. Even the Lancaster Police have the red rose on their emblems! But plans to operate the diner in Lancaster fell through, So Gordon proposed his diner to officials in the Pennsylvania towns of Carlisle, Bethlehem, and even Stroudsburg, its original home as well as Corning, New York and others. Lancaster, Pa was named after Lancashire, England, and thier symbol is also the red rose, from the house of Lancashire. During this period Gordon worked odd jobs as a truck driver and steel worker to keep the dream alive.The diner was known as "JERRY’S". (Jerry is a female named Jerry Dragousha). Prior to that it was known as the Lackawanna Trail Diner. In September of 2003 Gordon moved the Red Rose Diner about 177 miles to Towanda where it stands today at 526 Main Street(Route 6) and Washington Street. While setting up the diner in Towanda, Gordon worked at a meat packing plant to help make ends meet. Gordon sold his sizable baseball collection and other memorabilia. He also received a grant from the state Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program. This is Gordon’s second venture restoring diners.. But Gordon has assisted in the moving of many more.
Gordon’s first venture involved a1940 SILK CITY diner on Route 1 Clarksville, NJ. He found the diner about 5 miles from where he grew up in Princeton Junction. The Clarksville was orginally called Swifty's (1951-1986 ) and by 1988 it was going to be demolished. Enter Gordon who use to eat there as a lad. It took 4 years restore the "Clarksville". Two weeks before it was to open and after moving the diner 1700 miles to Decorah, a drunk ran his car into it. Gordon managed to repaired it and operated at 910 Maiden Lane, Decorah , Iowa for 6 years. In 1993 it became the 6th diner to be put on the National Register of Historic places. The diner was eventually sold and transported to Gennevilliers, France near Paris where it stands today. (We got the Statue of Liberty and they got the Clarksville Diner. )Many people ask if the diner came from Clarksville, Tennessee that the #1 Monkey song "Take the Last Train From Clarksville" mentions. We hate to tell you..... it’s not! In New Jersey, most if not all diners are owned by Greeks. Although Gordon is not biologically Greek, in his heart he tries to be Greek in developing some of his famous dishes like the Nick's Special.. a spinach and feta cheese omelette served on a toasted pita, topped with diced tomatoes and with O'Brien potatoes on the side. A very time consuming meal but Gordon feels it's worth the effort to see the customers feast on it.

It should be noted that Gordon spent much effort to track down additional parts from the Red Rose which were missing when he bought it. You will also note that there are brass plates with the number 1215 on the sliding entrance doors... Gordon had to go to the mat just to get one of them.

A recent addition to the Diner is Betty Roof, a seasoned waitress since high school and even owned her own diner at one time. . Gordon is married to his lovey girl who lives In Decorah.. They meet each other when ever he or she can get away which is not often enough. Gordon loves old movies.. the old classics and can recite lines from many of them. He has met a lot of interesting people in his day who shared his varied interests. You could spend weeks listing to his stories and never hear the same one twice. The Future? One of Gordon's loves is painting. Gordon would love to have the time it takes to persue painting. He has already worked with his mother and made a whole series of baseball stadium post cards. Give Gordon some paint, plywood, paper, cardboard and he will create something amazing.. Yes , one day, Gordon would love to find the right young couple to take over the Red Rose and nurture it as he has done.But for now, Gordon loves doing what he is doing.... making people happy. A lot of sweat and blood went into Gordon's diners. It's a tough game if it's done right. No short cuts. No pre-cooked beacon or hot dogs or hambergers. Top quality meat and supplys. To Gordon this is his ministry.. He preaches fellowship and harmony.. but even Gordon has his limits. Gordon loves people, but don't push your luck as there are at least two customer who are not welcome back. Can you imagine being banned from this wonderful place. So take heed, enjoy your coffee and tell a friend to visit the Red Rose Diner!

ufg@qwest.net