Visit this beloved Pennsylvania restaurant featured on Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives

Known for its home fries and scrapple, a mix of pork scraps and cornmeal, Daddypops is a favorite among locals and visitors alike. Named after owner Ken Smith’s grandfather, the suburban Philadelphia diner is an ode to the 1950s, with a jukebox, an old phone booth and barber stools at the counter.

Set in a 1953 diner car, Daddypops was featured in season three of the Food Network hit show “Diners, Drive-ins and Dives” hosted by Guy Fieri. Visitors on TripAdvisor have called the diner “a trip into real small-town America” and “the best little place in Hatboro.” Open from 6 a.m. to 2 p.m. daily, the diner only has 52 seats but Smith says the line moves fast.

One part of what makes Daddypops so unique is the mugs of regular customers lining the walls. Owner Ken Smith said the wall has 75 mugs brought in by customers who frequent the diner.

“The waitresses know everyone,” Smith said. “In other words, when the customer comes in, they usually know their mug, pick it off the wall, fill it with coffee and hand it to the customer before they even get a menu.”

The diner also served as the setting for a local PBS show, “Counter Culture.” Each week, host Grover Silcox would interview different writers, actors, historians and more at the diner, with the regulars’ mugs hanging in the background. The show won Mid-Atlantic Emmy awards in 2019 and 2021, and Smith keeps one of the trophies in a glass case in the diner’s kitchen.

The restaurant, which used to go through 200 pounds of potatoes a day, has seen tougher times in the pandemic years. Smith said about three-quarters of business has returned but there’s an increase in new customers at the diner since the pandemic.

“The pandemic tried to wipe us out but we’re still cooking,” Smith said. “We picked up almost a new generation of customers.”

What to know: The restaurant is cash only, but an ATM is available. Parking and seating at the restaurant is limited, so visitors should be prepared to park and walk or wait for a table at the diner. Some guests on TripAdvisor have mentioned a lack of accessibility for those with mobility issues.

How to get there: From State College, take U.S. Route 22 to Harrisburg and I-76 to Hatboro

Other things to do: Crooked Eye Brewery, Speed Raceway

This story was originally published July 17, 2022 at 6:00 AM.