luncheteria
A dated American term for a casual cafeteria-style eatery that specializes in lunch service — think counter seats, daily specials on a chalkboard, and quick service for the midday crowd.
Definitions
A dated American term for a casual cafeteria-style eatery that specializes in lunch service — think counter seats, daily specials on a chalkboard, and quick service for the midday crowd. Luncheterias were common in mid-20th century American cities, filling the gap between a proper sit-down restaurant and a diner. The word has a charming retro quality that captures the optimistic, can-do vocabulary of the postwar American food scene.
Every weekday at noon, the office workers would pile into the luncheteria on the ground floor for soup and a sandwich.
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(US, dated) A cafeteria where lunch is served.
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Semantically related
- lunchette76%
An American term for a small, informal restaurant or lunch counter that serves light meals — smaller and more casual than a full restaurant. The diminutive '-ette' suffix signals its modest scale. Part of a family of '-ette' diminutive establishments (kitchenette, dinette) common in American English for describing small-scale domestic or commercial spaces.
- lunchette70%
(US) A little restaurant that serves lunch.
- one-arm lunchroom67%
(US, slang) A diner serving snacks and simple meals.
- dairy lunch67%
(historic, US) An establishment serving light, ready-made food and drink, such as sandwiches, soup, and donuts. Mostly limited to early 20th century US.