Business Q&A: Empress Diner

A true East Meadow institution, the is almost as old as the town itself. Mike Panagatos and his brother, Danny, grew up working in the diner and later returned as the owners. 

It has been named the Long Island Press “Best of Long Island” second best diner for the past two years. Patch sat down with Mike to talk about the diner, business, East Meadow and more. Check it out below:

Tell us how the Empress Diner started.

“In 1955, three gentlemen opened it up. In 1967, my father and uncle bought it. My uncle then left the business and I took over his spot. Since then my father has passed away and now my brother and I are the owners.”

How did you get into this business?

“I went to St. John’s – I have a business degree – and I have a culinary diploma from the New York Restaurant School. I did my internship at the Plaza Hotel. We have owned different restaurants – we have owned seafood restaurants and we had restaurants on the north shore. Now we sold them all and we are just here – my brother and I.”

What makes East Meadow a great place to own a business?

“I grew up in East Meadow, I’m an East Meadow High School graduate…I know so many of the people, so I feel that I have an advantage by growing up in the area. I am probably one of the only diner owners who grew up in the area and has a business in the same area. It’s just a great sense of community. I'm involved, I'm in the East Meadow Kiwanis, I'm  currently the vice president of the chamber of commerce, I'm also the past present. I've always been involved and try to give back to the community. I run different charity events for Kiwanis and the chamber, and give back to the community as much as I can.”

What special services does the Empress offer?

“We have a private room in the back and we do meeting there – Kiwanis meets here, the chamber of commerce meets here. We have charitable functions meet here…different church groups meet here. Sometimes, we give the room out for free for different organizations to meet if they need it and it is a good cause.”

Why do customers keep coming back?

“I think that we have good food, good prices and a pleasant atmosphere. We are well known in the community and it is an institution – us and Borrellis are the oldest restaurants in East Meadow. We have customers that have been coming since we have opened. They have brought their children and their have brought their children. We sometimes have two or three generations of people who come in for breakfast. They say ‘I used to come here when I was a kid and now I am brining my kids.’ People like that tradition. They like our look of an old time diner look. We renovated 10 years ago to give it that classic look.”

What is your favorite part about owning the Empress?

“I can eat whatever I want whenever I want. I am the boss so I don’t have to listen to anybody. Being that we are a diner, we have so many things on the menu that there is always something different to eat. What I try to do is try to create different menu items.”