Downtown Landmark
From ambience to cuisine, John’s City Diner is familiar and comforting.
By Jan Walsh Photos by Cary Norton
Pulling up in front of John’s City Diner takes me back in time. As a teenager I loved dining in downtown Birmingham and frequented Joy Young’s, La Paree and John’s. Years have passed and the restaurants have changed, but John’s City Diner is still a part of this scene.
In 2004, husband and wife Shannon and Shana Gober transformed the former John’s restaurant—named for John Proferis, who opened the restaurant in the 1940s—into John’s City Diner, a landmark of their own. Two years later they opened a second location of this modern diner in Trussville.
Mermaid, Razzle Dazzle and ‘57 Chevy are popular cocktails. But dining on spring’s fi rst 80-degree day is reason to celebrate with a bottle of bubbly. We select Greg Norman Sparkling Wine.
Service at John’s is more than a cut above what one would expect in a diner. Our server, David, presents the bottle and pours a taste of the wine. After my approval, he asks if the temperature of the wine is to my liking. Too many restaurants do not serve wine at proper temperatures, with Champagne and sparkling wine being the most neglected and served too warm. David, however, ensures the wine is cool throughout dinner.
The menu, a mix of Southern comfort and Asian infl uence, retains several original John’s dishes while highlighting the Gobers’ own. “Not Your Mama’s Macaroni and Cheese is the crowd favorite. A close second would be whatever fi sh feature we have for the day,” Shannon Gober says.
Tonight we order dishes that are new to us. We begin with City Diner Potato Chips. John’s is known for its hearty portions, and this dish is no exception. A mound of homemade potato chips, topped with bleu cheese and creamy Alfredo, are a comforting way to start.
We then order Beer Battered Shrimp and the special of Encrusted Flounder. The fl ounder arrives with a beurre blanc sauce for added richness, over a bed of fi re-roasted grits and a bowl of scrumptious Southern greens. The Gulf shrimp are hand-battered and deep-fried to a golden brown and are served with remoulade sauce for dipping.
For dessert we choose one dish, Frozen Lemonade Pie, and one dessert cocktail, Absolut Vanilla White Russian. The fi rm, ice-cold wedge of pie makes a perfect springtime choice. The vanilla cocktail provides a creamy, smooth fi nish to the evening.
The Gobers are considering two other locations in the Birmingham metro area for new John’s City Diners, as well as out-of-state expansion in Ohio. They also have other restaurant concepts under consideration. But here at the original John’s location, Gober will likely never outgrow the legend who founded the restaurant. So many diners call Gober John that now he answers to it—with a smile.
