White Manna

White Manna and White Mana are the names of two fast food diners in the U.S. state of New Jersey, named after manna, the Biblical food. They were originally opened by Louis Bridges, who purchased the original diner that was introduced in the 1939 New York World's Fair in Flushing Meadows Park, Queens.[1] Both buildings were manufactured by Paramount Diners of Oakland, New Jersey in the late-1930s.[2] Bridges owned five diners, all named "White Manna".

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Jersey City, New Jersey

The White Mana, located at 470 Tonnele Avenue [1] in Western Slope in Jersey City is a historical landmark and was the 1939 World's Fair building, including the first Mana to open. When originally introduced, it was called the "diner of the future" and an "Introduction to Fast Food."[1] According to the present owner, Mario Costa, Jr., the reason for the difference in spelling was a result of an error when the sign was serviced.[3] It is famous for its hamburgers and sells approximately 3,000 a week.[4]

Costa, who had worked at the diner through high school and college, bought the diner for $80,000 in 1979 from Bridges’ brother Webster. In 1996, Costa decided to sell the diner and lot for $500,000, but soon regretted the deal when he discovered that the new owners intended to replace it with a doughnut franchise. Costa attempted to back out of the deal, but the buyers refused to void the transaction. He filed a lawsuit to stop the sale, but lost. Eventually, the buyers agreed to sell it back to him at a higher cost than their purchase price.[4]

In 1997, the Jersey City Historic Preservation Committee declared the diner a local landmark. White Mana is located at .

Hackensack, New Jersey

The Hackensack White Manna Diner is a fast food restaurant located at 358 River Street. The diner has been at the site since 1946, and it is on the banks of the Hackensack River. From time to time, two local brothers will pull up to the small store via boat, much to the delight of the patrons.

The White Manna Diner of Hackensack has also been featured on Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives and The Best Thing I Ever Ate[5] on the Food Network as well as Man v. Food and Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations on the Travel Channel.

Both the Hackensack White Manna and Jersey City White Mana were featured in the "American Food Feud" episode of the Food Network series Food Feuds [6].

White Manna is located at .

References

  1. ^ a b c Karnoutsos, Carmela. "White Mana Diner". Jersey City, Past and Present. New Jersey City University. http://www.njcu.edu/programs/jchistory/Pages/W_Pages/White_Mana_Diner.htm. Retrieved 2008-06-18. 
  2. ^ "North New Jersey Diner Directory". Diner City. http://www.dinercity.com/njDiner/northNJ.html. Retrieved 2008-06-18. 
  3. ^ "Cheap Eats". New Jersey Monthly. December 21, 2007. http://njmonthly.com/articles/restaurants/cheapeats/cheap_eats.html. Retrieved 2008-06-18. 
  4. ^ a b Stewart, Barbara (February 23, 1997). "Burger, Burger, Burger: How a Fast Food Landmark Almost Vanished - New York Times". The New York Times. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9500E6D6143EF930A15751C0A961958260. Retrieved 2008-06-18. 
  5. ^ Best Thing I Ever Ate: With My Hands
  6. ^ Food Feuds: American Food Feud

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