Decades-Old Diner Shutters After Health Department Finds Filth

FOREST HILLS, QUEENS — A diner that's been in Forest Hills since the 1930s was temporarily shuttered last week after inspectors found flies and rats in the restaurant.

In addition to the pests, T-Bone Diner, a neighborhood institution located next to the 71-Avenue subway station, wasn't following food safety protocols, the Department of Health learned during a Feb. 3rd inspection. The person supervising food operations at the Queens Boulevard diner didn't even have a necessary food safety certificate, records show.

These "critical" violations prompted the restaurant's immediate closure, a move that the health department makes at least several times per-week with eateries that can't fix "public health hazards" (a vermin infestation and missing safety certificate in the case of T-Bone Diner) at the time of inspection. Restaurants that resolve violations are permitted to reopen.

After photos of the shuttered diner were posted on a Forest Hills Facebook page, dozens of neighbors took to the comments, many of whom weren't surprised to hear about the closure.

"I went there with some coworkers several years ago and the place was dirty and unappealing. A man was clipping his toenails at the booth next to us," commented one neighbor followed by a barf emoji.

Another described the diner as "horrible and filthy" adding that she wouldn't even go there for a cup of coffee. "I definitely stayed clear," she wrote.

Hazards aside, at least one neighbor was sad to hear about the closure. "Oh my! Hope they reopen soon," she wrote, linking a Queens Chronicle article detailing the diner's decades-long history in Forest Hills.

It seems like that neighbor's wish might come true, since a written sign posted in the window (and signed by management) reads "we will open soon."

T-Bone Diner representatives did not immediately respond to Patch's inquiry about the signs or store closure.