The word diner has almost become synonymous with Greek-American because the country was dotted with so many of them over the past century and now the Greek-American Heritage Society of Philadelphia is showing them off in a photo exhibit.

Greek Diners and Restaurants – The Start of the American Dream, will be held March 14 from 5:30-9:30 PM at the University of The Arts – Solmssen Court and Hamilton Hall, 320 South Broad Street.

The society said it wants to honor, “the families that operated them, the famous diner/restaurant names, the food, the atmosphere, their importance to the community…and the photographs that captured it all for more than a century.”

Scores of diners from across the northeast – many long closed – are being featured, ranging from Pennsylvania to Delaware and New Jersey, with names like Vorhees Diner, Athletic Luncheonette, Atlantic Diner, Bee Lunch, Burpulis Restaurant, Delta Restaurant and Grecian Diner.

“They are places where people meet their neighbors and have a good meal. For many customers, the Greek-owned diner/restaurant is a place where they remember going as a child and now bring their grandchildren,” it was so noted.