Greasy spoon

A greasy spoon is a term used to refer to a small, cheap restaurant typically specializing in fried foods. The term greasy spoon has been used in the United States since at least the 1920s to describe diners and coffee shops, and is presently used throughout the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland to refer to British and Irish cafes. According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the term greasy spoon originated in the United States and is now used in various English-speaking countries.

The earliest appearance of the term in print was in Macmillan's Magazine in 1906, referring to events of an earlier time: a restaurant in Paris was visited daily by Robert Louis Stevenson in 1874. "...the Cremerie in the Rue Delambre, - an eating-house much frequented by artists, and familiarly known as The Greasy Spoon..."

Nicknaming cheap fried food restaurants after an unwashed spoon dates back at least to 1848: "The Gabbione [in Rome]... has withal an appearance so murky and so very far removed from cleanliness, that the Germans have bestowed upon it the apellation of the 'Dirty Spoon'."