Summit Restaurant To Get A Makeover After Winning $50K Grant

SUMMIT, NJ - The Summit Diner is getting $50,000 as part of a campaign to help preserve historic restaurants.

American Express and the National Trust for Historic Preservation are giving away grants to 50 restaurants across the United States, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands in order to support business at small, independent cultural and culinary landmarks. Resy, and American Express company, is also waiving one year of fees for each winner to access its restaurant management software.

“What started as a pandemic response has grown into a movement to uplift the historic restaurants that shape our neighborhoods and connect generations through food,” says Madge Thomas, Head of American Express Corporate Sustainability. “Our 2025 grantees reflect the deep-rooted food traditions that define American communities, and we hope these grants spark ripple effects that sustain them in the future.”

The Summit Diner has been family-owned since 1964 under the current management. Opening in 1928, the restaurant has only had one major remodel in its storied history, adjusting its former railroad car look to a new structure in 1939. While the car is not truly from a train, the model has been sparking the imaginations of kids and adults alike for decades.

"The Summit Diner is my first home," one of the owners, Jim, tells Patch. "I spend more time here than my house. This month, it will be 45 years for me working here." He says he and his team learned of the grant after the mayor's office called to say they'd like to submit them for the honor as a local staple of the community.

The funds will be used to address different issues with a few of the outdoor aesthetics, but will not compromise the famous railroad theme. The money will be put towards repairing broken and missing parts of the building, replacing a sign that was hit by a car, cleaning and repairing the gutters, among other things.

The "Backing Historic Small Restaurants" initiative has awarded more than $8 million to 180 restaurants in all 50 states, Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands over the last five years.

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