A great art deco dining car that has survived the times. It is one of a fleet of dining cars created in stainless steel for durability. The entire restaurant is designed to be loaded onto a truck or a train and hauled off to another city if times turn tough. Fortunately for Saint Paul, things have never gotten so bad that Mickey’s has needed to be anywhere else. These diners are American institutions, though many of the streamlined wonders have fallen into a state of disrepair or been shipped to places like Germany and Japan where their novelty is more appreciated. Open 24 hours a day for more than 60 years, what makes it even better is its urban location in the city’s downtown that gives you a feeling for what life was like when the city bustled and businessmen, cops, and kids plonked down at the counter for a cuppa joe or a slice of hot apple pie. Some of the recipes are pre-World War Two and authentic to the last detail. To visit Mickey’s on a crisp winter’s night when the snow is falling and the traffic outside makes sloshing noises in the slush is to know what America was like in its golden age.

• The diner is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
• Mickey’s Dining Car has been recreated in ceramic as part of the Department 56 novelty Christmas miniature collection.