Tastee Diner fans have the opportunity to own a piece of the restaurant’s history with an auction closing Wednesday.
The downtown Silver Spring institution closed abruptly in March after owner Gene Wilkes sold it for $3.1 million to D.C.-based developer Roadside Development LLC, citing health concerns.
Roadside and Wilkes had been in talks for the past year regarding the sale of the restaurant at 8601 Cameron St. in downtown Silver Spring, which closed a day after the sale was completed.
The auction, held online by Rasmus Auctions and closes at 10 a.m. on Wednesday, May 17, includes all of the restaurant’s contents, according to DCist:
The auction truly has everything: from framed artwork, knickknacks, and photos of the diner over the years to less sentimental items such as cutlery, patio furniture, a huge grill or two or three, the freezers, the storage cabinets, the sinks, the stand mixer, the TV’s, wet floor signs and a stack of takeout cups.
Tastee Diner opened in 1946 at the corner of Wayne Ave. and Georgia Ave. in downtown Silver Spring, according to The MoCo Show. The classic railroad car design was built on-site at the original location by the Jerry O’Mahoney Diner Company.
The County Council designated the diner a historic landmark six years after Wilkes purchased it in 1988. In June 2000, Wilkes relocated part of the dining cab to make way for the construction of the former Discovery Communications headquarters (now Inventa Towers).
Tastee Diner’s locations in Bethesda and Laurel remain open.
“File:Tastee Diner – Silver Spring, Maryland.jpg” by Farragutful is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.