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<p>PITTSTON &#8212; No, you didn&#8217;t wake up in the past.</p><p>Denny&#8217;s Pittston location near WalMart off Highway 315 opened in September, but the official grand opening celebration was held from Feb. 6 through Feb. 9. During this period, turkey sandwiches, country-fried steak and Denny&#8217;s iconic Grand Slam could be purchased by customers for half-off menu prices. According to franchisee Naymesh Patel, the event was worth the wait.</p><p>&#8220;Initially, when we opened, we hired 120 employees, all were new according to Denny&#8217;s standards,&#8221; Patel said. &#8220;If I did the grand opening on the initial week, I&#8217;m sure my employees wouldn&#8217;t have been ready for that. If there&#8217;s an opening and I disappoint the customers, there&#8217;s going to be a huge problem for me in the future.&#8221;</p><p>The Pittston location is Patel&#8217;s first Denny&#8217;s and his first 24-hour restaurant &#8212; his previous experience as a restaurateur comes via Ready Go Burrito in Bloomsburg, a venture he sold so he could focus on the American-style diner. Patel said he chose Pittston for a variety of reasons: its location off two major highways, the growing customer base and the nearby industrial park.</p><p>Patel also hopes to draw customers from every age demographic by utilizing Denny&#8217;s new &#8220;heritage&#8221; store concept, which aims to combine vintage diner appeal with a modern aesthetic.</p><p>&#8220;Nowadays, any restaurant, they are trying to get a new look,&#8221; Patel said. &#8220;They want a modernized design &#8212; they want to change the image that Denny&#8217;s is only for senior citizens. This kind of look can welcome any customer age-wise.&#8221;</p><p>Retired Pittston residents Ed and Linda O&#8217;Dell said the Pittston Denny&#8217;s welcomes them about &#8220;once a month.&#8221; They didn&#8217;t take advantage of the grand opening savings &#8212; Ed ordered his usual prime rib Philadelphia melt while Linda opted for chicken quesadillas and French fries &#8212; but the new look made an impression on the couple.</p><p>&#8220;I like it; it&#8217;s more modern,&#8221; Linda said. &#8220;I like the openness of it.&#8221;</p><p>If grand opening savings, a new look and the familiar Denny&#8217;s menu weren&#8217;t enough to draw patrons to Patel&#8217;s new venture, the Bloomsburg businessman hopes the waterfall at the front of the restaurant is. According to Patel, Pittston Denny&#8217;s is the first in the United States to house the indoor water feature.</p><p>Whether the restaurant becomes a tourist destination for diner aficionados remains to be seen. For now, Patel is working to make his investment a meal destination for residents and visitors of Pittston, during his belated grand opening and into the future.</p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">Naymesh Patel is the franchisee of Denny&#8217;s in Pittston. The restaurant is celebrating its grand opening through Feb. 9 with special deals on three dishes: country-fried steak, turkey sandwich and Denny&#8217;s signature breakfast dish, the Grand Slam. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/web1_dennys-photo-untoned-1.jpg</photo0><caption0>Naymesh Patel is the franchisee of Denny&#8217;s in Pittston. The restaurant is celebrating its grand opening through Feb. 9 with special deals on three dishes: country-fried steak, turkey sandwich and Denny&#8217;s signature breakfast dish, the Grand Slam. </caption0><photoCredit0>Gene Axton | Sunday Dispatch </photoCredit0></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/web1_Pittston-Dennys-untoned-1.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Pittston Denny&#8217;s was built with the company&#8217;s new &#8216;heritage&#8217; style, which mixes vintage diner elements with a modern feel to attract customers of varying ages. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo1>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/web1_Pittston-Dennys-untoned-1.jpg</photo1><caption1>Pittston Denny&#8217;s was built with the company&#8217;s new &#8216;heritage&#8217; style, which mixes vintage diner elements with a modern feel to attract customers of varying ages. </caption1><photoCredit1>Submitted photo </photoCredit1></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><subheadMeta>Franchisee Naymesh Patel says the location is ready to handle a grand opening event</subheadMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Gene Axton</p><p>gaxton@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach Gene Axton at 570-991-6406 or on Twitter @GeneAxtonTL</p></shirttailMeta></div>

Pittston Denny’s celebrates grand opening with meal deals