Photograph of the Cheyenne's exterior at night by Goggla on Flickr
The Cheyenne Diner is closing for good today, to make room for another Manhattan residential building. The 68-year-old diner fell victim to the city's own successes and spiraling real estate costs. The owner of the property, George Papas, who owns the nearby Skylight Diner, figures that no matter how successful the Cheyenne is (a hamburger is $4.50, the lumberjack breakfast--two eggs, pancakes or French toast, and ham, sausage or bacon--is $7.95), there's no way it could match the rental income equal to the nine-story building that is planned to replace it.
Associated Press photographer Bebeto Matthews captured some scenes inside the Cheyenne Diner's during its final days (see gallery below). More images of the Art Moderne diner on 33rd St. and 9th Ave. can be seen at NYC-Architecture and Forgotten-NY.
