If you have ever driven to Atlantic City or Long Beach Island, chances are you have driven past Lucille’s Luncheonette – that red rectangular building that comes up after miles of pine trees. Maybe you stopped because the signs along the roadway lead you in – offering homemade soups, pies and salads. Perhaps you stopped because you needed to stretch your legs, freshen up or want a cool drink. Whatever the reason for stepping into Lucille’s Luncheonette, you are not going to be disappointed with what you find here in Warren Grove, New Jersey.
Building Success
In 1975 Lucille and Jim Bates purchased a building on County Route 539. Originally, Jim planned to make it a hot dog stand. When Lucille looked at the structure, she saw more than just a walk-up hot dog stand. Daughters Diane Brown and Karen Bates-Flynn talk freely about their mom’s shyness in the beginning of the business. Lucille’s original position at the luncheonette was head chef and she spent her early days here in the kitchen. The Bates family had four children and everyone was put to work.
The early years were good ones for the restaurant. Open every day except Sunday, initially from 5 a.m. to 3 p.m., the luncheonette became a thriving hub for the truckers driving to and from the newly approved Casinos that were starting to be built in Atlantic City. Karen was peeling potatoes while Diane was waitressing after school. “Working hard keeps you out of trouble,” was just one of Lucille’s favorite sayings and this family certainly went all in. At this point, both daughters can claim they have done every job possible in their years growing up in the restaurant.
Unexpected Changes
Five years into the business Jim passed away. The loss was difficult for Lucille. Diane noticed her mom slowing down in the kitchen. It was at this point that a shift happened and Diane took over kitchen duties and Lucille officially became the “hostess” – and being the hostess is where Lucille really began to shine. Lucille’s Luncheonette always offered good home cooking, but now customers also got a little taste of Lucille along with the meal.
Lucille came out of her shell and into her own as a hostess. She offered customers kindness, compassion and laughter. Lucille could work the room. Lucille lived a very full life; full of the normal highs and lows we all must experience. She was no stranger to sadness, death, addiction and sudden loss. One of her own daughters died tragically in a car crash around the corner from the restaurant during her lifetime. Lucille had the ability to engage with customers and turn them into family. “You never know until you live it”, she would sometimes say when consoling a new friend. Lucille loved to joke, especially with the male clientele. Her daughters lovingly refer to it as, “dinner with a show” when mom used to actively work the patrons.
Working for a Living
What was it like growing up in a restaurant family, I asked Diane and Karen. “A lot of work”, said Karen; and “our lifestyle” was Diane’s reply. Lucille wanted her children “to learn a work ethic. To show up on time and to have on clean shoes.” The restaurant has always been a family affair, but Diane went on to also take a job with Stafford Township as a Purchasing Specialist and Karen still drives a school bus as well. Their children and grandchildren are now factored into the Lucille’s workforce mix whenever possible.
Running With the Devil
The seating capacity at Lucille’s is deceiving. There are 9 tables inside along with countertop seating, making for a total of 42 inside. Since Summer is the perfect time to stop on the way to the shore, the outside seating has been enhanced. With a combination of picnic tables and a lovely covered patio area as many as 70 people can easily be accommodated outside. Another fun feature at Lucille’s is the little country store area. “I Ate With the Jersey Devil” t-shirts are absolutely en vogue here.
The Jersey Devil is important to Lucille’s Luncheonette on several levels. As a business based in the Pine Barrens, the association is natural. For years people would stop at Lucille’s to have their picture taken with the chainsaw art Jersey Devil sculpture that sat in the parking lot since at least 2017. That was until May 2023 when someone stole the statue from the restaurant. When Joe Wenal, the original statue’s artist heard it was taken his response was immediate – he began working on a newer, better one! In October of 2023, Wenal unveiled the current 900 – 1,500 lb. Jersey Devil sculpture carved out of white pine and beautifully painted. This is the gorgeous statue that currently sits chained in the parking lot surrounded by cameras.
Reversing Polarity
When the statue was stolen it wasn’t only the family members who were upset – it was the community. They quickly mobilized and set up a fund to pay for a new statue for Lucille’s. The family was deeply moved by the outpouring of support, however they had a different idea. In order to turn a positive into a negative they decided to pay for their own statue and donate the several thousand dollars raised to David’s Dream and Believe Cancer Foundation. This is a non-profit that raises money for cancer patients and their families and the organization is important to this community. And, once again in 2024 Lucille’s has just announced that for the last week of June, a portion of the proceeds from every one of their famous pies will again be donated to this worthy cause.
Comfort Food
All of this only illustrates the obvious, Lucille’s is a community hub. It fills the void as a hangout for locals to meet, catch up on gossip, have a meal and share in the good old camaraderie feeling we used to get in old school diners. This is definitely a family restaurant. There are little toys and magnets you can ask for the kids to play with as they wait for their orders. There’s a vibe when you walk in that everyone knows each other – even if they didn’t when they first walked in. Lucille’s is a place you can expect to be called “Hun’, at least once by the staff. It feels like home.
Celebrity Status
So, the vibe is great, but how’s the food?? It’s a restaurant after all, not a club. In 2015, Anthony Bourdain’s Parts Unknown visited Lucille’s and added it to The New Jersey Food Trail, still a part of the VisitNJ.org Travel Guide. Lucille was a big fan of Bourdain’s and was nervous as a fan girl when she finally met him. In addition to receiving Bourdain’s blessing, in 2024 they were just voted Best Breakfast Spot in NJ based on combined Yelp and Trip Advisor Reviews.
Keeping It Real
Lucille’s is all about country home cooking – the recipes used are still from Lucille herself. The homemade pies bursting with blueberries, apples or coconut are worth the trip alone. The soups, chili and meatloaf are the kind that you wish your mom would have made. Diane said one patron even requested a meatloaf birthday cake one year, that’s how beloved the food here is.
Lucille passed away in 2016. Karen and Diane have kept the business going; Diane is front of the house, and Karen is in the back. When I asked about the challenges since Lucille is gone the first reply was poignant, “It was hard coming in without mom. The customers missed her.” There have been little changes made like being closed now on Mondays and shortening the work day to a 2 p.m. closing: the enhanced outdoor seating area is great too. Diane said that learning the business part was the most challenging for her. Making repairs, and deciding what and when to upgrade things, were all decisions Lucille made (or didn’t make). For the most part, they have kept with the recipe for success left by Lucille
Hometown Home Cooking
Lucille’s definitely has it’s “regulars.” It was those regulars, the local crowd that was impacted most during the covid shutdown. Karen shared a story that during COVID the regulars who met at the luncheonette daily; many widows and widowers who enjoyed the companionship of their neighbors over breakfast or lunch, suddenly were left isolated with no place for human contact with their beloved Lucille’s locked down.They chose to get sandwiches at the nearby Wawa and they would sit outside in the picnic area of Lucille’s just to be together.This illustrates how important Lucille’s has become to this area as a community hub and meeting place.This family restaurant, when functioning, really does kind of feel like a livingroom filled with lively friends and relations. “That’s how it is with family.,” Lucille would often remark to her girls.
Lucille’s Luncheonette is the kind of joint we all wish we had in our hometown. It’s a place where you can get a good home cooked meal at a reasonable price, where you can meet your neighbors to catch up on the latest gossip, where you can quench your thirst or take a pleasant break on the way to the shore, or even just use the restroom and not get dirty looks. Lucille’s is more than a physical structure, it’s a state of mind. It’s a throwback to a time when there was connection in community. We are pretty lucky that although Lucille may be gone, her family has chosen to continue the tradition of welcoming and feeding the hearts and souls of all who pass through their doorway.
