Landmark Empire Diner to Close

[slideshow id=217]Chelsea's Empire Diner will serve its last burger and shake this weekend. The owners of the iconic 10th Avenue spot that resembles a dining car lost their lease.

With its flashing "EAT" sign and black and chrome interior, the eatery looks like a set in a film noir. When it opened, it was the only restaurant on that stretch of the far West Side.

Co-owner Renate Gonzalez got her start at the Empire managing the graveyard shift. She says it was then she realized the place was a bit different:

"A woman walking in with her boyfriend on a leash and making him sit on the floor and eating his food on the floor, I wasn't used to that," she says.

Gonzalez says over the years people have told her they've stopped by for more than the food. "Manhattan, lets face it, had a lot of lonely people, people who don't have families," she says. "I've had messages on the Internet: I always knew the Empire Diner would be there, no matter what time of day or night."

Co-owner and chef Mitchell Woo says for more than 30 years, the regulars were always fabulous, and some were even well known. "This is where the Chelsea renaissance started," he says. "Debbie Harry used to come here often. The word is that she nursed her then-boyfriend back to health on our chicken soup, which is my mother's old recipe."

The restaurant has also slung hash to celebrities such as Madonna and Steven Spielberg. It has been immortalized in films such as Woody Allen's "Manhattan."

Woo says his food philosophy for the past 30 years has been simple. "It's comfort food," he says. "We're not trying to do anything really fancy here. I want people to come here and feel like they're eating from the kitchen of an uncle who can really cook."

The diner will shut off its grill for good Saturday at midnight. On Sunday afternoon, Gonzalez will throw a party for anyone who's ever eaten, worked, or had a memorable time at the diner.

A new owner will take over and is expected to keep the diner car structure in tact.