Tom’s Restaurant. Who would have known it was real? For the rest of you Seinfeld nerds, you can sympathize with the joy I felt entering this veritable sanctuary. Buried in law books, I often find the only respite from my studies is a healthy dose of Seinfeld. (I have watched all 9 seasons since moving to New York.) But this respite was too good to pass up. There it sits on the corner of 112th and Broadway. A hole-in-the-wall, run-of-the-mill diner, skyrocketed into infamy due to one little television show. Inside, it is adorned with pictures of the castmembers and memorabilia from the show, but it is nothing like the set seen on TV. For those of you who know the show well, you know that it is called Monk’s, not Tom’s, but they never show the full title, they always cut it so it just says “Restaurant”. I was quite surprised to see that it was actually called Tom’s, and to be honest, a little scared to enter. If I was ever invited to a place called “Tom’s Restaurant”, assuredly I would have said no.
Upon entrance, I realized that the patronage was decidedly normal. Not flash-wielding, iphone toting tourists, but just regular upper Manhattanites. It was I who was the fraudulent new comer. But another dream had come true for me (by now you have realized I have very simple dreams). Ironically, they sat me at the bar. I suppose I belonged there, but the characters hate the bar in the show, and I felt a little short-changed. Nonetheless, I enjoyed a cup of coffee and a sandwich, and held back every instinct to order a “big salad”.
Next Quest: To see if I can get inside Jerry’s Apartment. 129 w. 81st St. Apt. 5A.
