The Coopersburg Diner (The Coop)

9:43 - 10:47 am

The parking lot at The Coop is a big “U” that wraps around the building. It is always a good sign when it is completely full, but that also means that parking was hard to find. We ended up in an extension of the lot in the back. A full parking lot tells you that it is a popping place to be for breakfast. The inside had a nice, large waiting area with plenty of bench seating. We did have to wait about 10-15 minutes for a table, but they were efficient and we did not mind at all. The restaurant itself was huge with tons of seating. We sat at a booth in probably the furthest back corner of the restaurant, but it was perfect for people watching. The wait staff have things down to a science; someone for drinks, someone for ordering food, someone to bring out food, and someone to clean up. Even though it was packed, it never felt like a long wait.

The Coop has a very expansive menu with tons of different options and specials. While there was nothing exotic, if you came in looking for a specific diner breakfast, they are probably serving it. With how big the breakfast menu was, we can’t even imagine everything they would offer for lunch and dinner.

Bethany

I got my decaf and water. The water was outstanding. Nice, crisp, cold, no chlorine, just how I like it. The coffee was fine. It didn’t wow me at all, just an average diner cup. I do appreciate that they bring out a mug and a full pot of coffee in the warmer for you. You can fill and refill your cup at your own pace. I ordered a “western wrap”, but I switched out ham for sausage (because that’s what I prefer). Overall, I thought the wrap was pretty good. It had a good ratio of eggs to fillings, whereas sometimes other wraps can have too much egg. I always like my crunchy veggies in there (this one had onions and peppers), but I do think it needed more cheese, like it was not cheesy enough. I like the potatoes, but I almost felt they were too potato-y, or too starchy, I don’t know. Some of the top pieces had a good crunch, but they weren’t all like that, and they definitely needed salt and ketchup.

In my need to have a sweet treat, we got a waffle with nutella and fresh fruit. I was impressed by the waffle. It was crisp on the outside and fluffy on the inside. We did wait to eat it until after we ate our main meal so it wasn’t as hot as I would have liked but that is 100% our fault. The fresh fruit was delicious. The strawberries and bananas were fresh and sweet, and Ben can talk about the blueberries because I don’t like raw blueberries. My BIGGEST complaint was the amount of nutella. There was a literal drizzle on there, along with a drizzle of another sweet sauce. But if you’re going to call it a “waffle with nutella”, I’m expecting a lot more nutella on there than what I received. It was delicious, but I would rather not have to scrape the plate to get the good stuff.

Ben

The orange juice was as standard as they come. I got asked whether I wanted a large or not which makes me feel like a little pipsqueak. I got the eggs Benedict, just classic. There was a bacon one but I decided to just keep it classic. I haven't had a plain benedict in a while. The sauce on the eggs was probably the thickest I've ever had. You probably could have put that on a spoon, turn it upside down and it wouldn’t move. Like you could have done a blizzard trick with it. The muffin itself was pretty unnotable. I think the egg was a little over, like it squirted maybe a little bit of yolk but it was definitely more cooked than I would have liked. I would like that extra sauce of the runny yolk, even though there was plenty of regular sauce. It just didn't feel right when it didn't pop like a pimple. I really liked the potatoes. They had that fake buttery/oily taste to them. I thought that with some ketchup or some hollandaise they were really good.

I was actually very impressed with the waffle. I ate the blueberries mainly and they were really good blueberries. I felt like all the fruit was very ripe and good, not just trash diner fruit. I think the other sauce besides the nutella was sweetened condensed milk. The waffle was pretty solid. I enjoyed it. 

Good waffle, mid Benedict