By CRISTINA JANNEY
Hays Post
On any given Sunday, you can find Lien and Kenny Quan and Lien's brother Luong "Lonnie" Quach at the 9th Street Diner.
"We call it our Sunday family day, because we are all here to work and help each other out," Lien said.
The restaurant business has always been a family affair. The family's newest cooperative effort is the 9th Street Diner, 230 W. Ninth.
Lonnie primarily works in the kitchen. He was working 12- and 14-hour days in the tech industry in California, but left the industry to come back and work in the culinary arts with his sister and brother-in-law.
The family operated the Western Kansas Saloon & Grill in WaKeeney for 19 years, but sold that business before buying the 9th Street Diner in Hays.
The Quan and Quach families purchased the former Golden Griddle in June 2019. After renovations, including building a new bar and remodeling the kitchen, the restaurant opened for a time for breakfast and lunch. The diner had to close in March as a result of the coronavirus.
The restaurant serves breakfast from 7 to 1:15 a.m. Tuesday through Sunday. The breakfast menu includes many diner staples, including pancakes, french toast, omelettes and skillets.
One of their signature skillets is the trough, which includes a little bit of everything — potatoes, biscuits, chicken fried steak, eggs, cheese and gravy.
You can also order sandwiches, burgers and salads over the the lunch hour.
The restaurant recently had a ribbon cutting to announce it was officially opening in the evening from 5 to 9 p.m. Tuesdays through Thursday and 5 to 9:30 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays. Reservations are not required.
Menu items include steak, pasta, pork, fish and shrimp. Prime rib is offered on Friday and Saturday nights. The diner makes its own homemade sauce for its chicken alfredo.
The restaurant also offers children's and senior menus.
The restaurant makes all its deserts in house, including cheesecake, chocolate lava cake, crème brûlée and pie. Ask for nightly dessert offerings.
9th Street has a full bar. It is available all hours the restaurant is open, which means you can order a bloody mary or mimosa with breakfast or brunch.
The bar is also known for its lemon drops and Long Island ice teas, Lien said.
Lien Quan said opening a new business during the COVID-19 pandemic has been very hard.
"People are worried and scared they might get sick," she said. "The governor shut us down, and we still had to keep our employees. To make sure they had jobs when we opened back up, we had to pay the main key employees while they were off."
The restaurant is trying to promote social distancing as well as requiring employees to wear masks during the pandemic.
"We just want people to come in and give it a try," she said.
Watch the diner's Facebook page for daily specials.