Reader’s Digest names Al’s Breakfast best diner in Minnesota

Reader’s Digest has named Al’s Breakfast in Minneapolis the best diner in the state.

The list names a single best diner per state, and the publication says they used a combination of customer ratings, TripAdvisor scores, and local gossip to make their determinations.

Al’s Breakfast is nestled in Dinkytown by the University of Minnesota campus. The iconic restaurant has been there since 1950 and can be easy to miss since it’s only about the width of a small alley, about 10 feet wide, their website says.

The 79-foot-long and very narrow diner only has 14 stools for customers, and sometimes guests are asked to shift stools to make room for other diners to sit next to each other.

When the diner first opened under Al Bergstrom in 1950, it served breakfast, lunch, and dinner. The change to only serving breakfast happened in 1961.

Today, Al’s Breakfast is open from 6 a.m. to 1 p.m. Monday through Saturday and from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Sundays. The establishment only accepts cash and personal checks for payment, and customers must be in line by 1 p.m. on the dot to be served. They have a list of helpful tips for anyone making their first trip to the tiny diner HERE.