Hi-Lite Restaurant
4524 Queen Street
https://www.hilitedowntown.com/
Food: 7/10
Space: 10/10
Price: 9/10
Total: 26/30
During the pandemic, locals fretted as small businesses across Niagara Falls closed their doors for the last time. Hi-Lite Restaurant, a downtown mainstay for 90 years, also closed for months—but, smartly, the owners took the forced downtime time to do a complete interior renovation that has transformed the classic diner into a chic, modern, retro-vibe experience, complete with plush red booths, bright lights, and jukeboxes galore.
Credit to ownership for not jacking up prices too much since then. Most dishes hover closer to $10 than $20, and the combination of fun decor and low cost has kept locals streaming in most mornings, packing the place from front to back. (On a recent visit, the booth closest to the door was occupied by police officers, which some might view as an endorsement.)
The menu is as traditional as it gets, with nearly no surprises at all. Hamburgers, eggs, hot dogs, sausages, bacon, fish and chips, chicken fingers—it’s all there, and nothing exceeds expectations. Potatoes are de rigueur. Breakfast sausages feel wrinkly on the outside and mushy on the inside. Coffee is hot and replenished at will. In keeping with most modern restaurants, they offer Beyond Meat burgers, which is a nice nod to vegetarian crowds, along with Greek fare such as gyros and a Greek burger with feta cheese and tzatziki, which gives the diner a bit of cultural identity.
Another distinction: commitment to drinks. Floats and hand-scooped milkshakes will delight the younger crowds, while a liquor license unlocks bottles and mixed drinks—not always a given in the family-friendly world of old-school diners.
All told, Hi-Lite is one of the better diners in the city, if only for the beautiful renovations and low cost. You’ll enjoy yourself—and the food will suffice.
