One Vietnam Marine has opened a diner in Naperville, with a focus on honoring the military.
“What we’re looking to do here is to have a home diner where people can be fed well and served well, be taken care of,” said Rosie’s Home Cookin’ Owner and Operator Lynn Lowder. “I tell people, our staff, that my belief is basically everybody that comes through that door behind you there, to this place, is dealing with something in their lives. So if they can come here and have that kind of a start for the day, then maybe the rest of the day can be a little bit better.”
There’s A First Time For Everything
Rosies Home Cookin’ opened a couple of months ago in the old Dominick’s shopping center on N. Aurora Road. Owned and operated by Marine Lynn Lowder, the 1960’s-style diner pays tribute to the men and women who have served in the armed forces. The Vietnam veteran had never worked in the restaurant business before, but says that’s where his three partners come into play.
“I’ve got a close friend in Dale Eisenberg, who has been in restaurants for 47 years,” said Lowder.“He and I founded a nonprofit called Veteran Business Project, where we help match veterans looking to get into business with existing businesses, so we coach them through. But in the process of talking to one another over the years, we talked about having a diner.”
Paying Tribute To The Military
Leslie Noelle and Mike Ventre round out the partnership. The four created the breakfast and lunch spot with a special eye toward honoring the military. Lowder said every day is Veterans Day inside Rosie’s. Any Veteran who comes in is granted a discount.
“We truly want to feed them well and let them know they’re welcome here,” said Lowder.
The diner has a missing man table which includes a light that never goes out, paying tribute to those who never returned home from combat.
Diners will spy commemorative Norman Rockwell plates on display, along with many depictions of Rosie The Riveter, whom the restaurant is named after.
Getting To Know His Customers
The diner has made a commitment to work with local and veteran-owned businesses when possible. But the daily investment they make is in getting to know their diners. Lowder spends his days at the diner talking to just about every customer. He treasures the one-on-one conversations
“Everybody’s got a story and everybody is generally working or retired, but they’ve all got a story and I like learning about them, where they’re from,” said Lowder. “I’m a down-stater, you know, people are coming in here and I meet lots of good people with interesting backgrounds, and I’m glad to have them here and hopefully, they’re glad to be here.”
The diner is open from 7 am to 2 pm, Tuesday through Sunday.
Naperville News 17’s Joe Kennedy Reports.
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