The Yankee Diner Is A Real Bargain

XX The Yankee Diner (two locations) 4010 196th St. S.W., Lynnwood, and 140th and Bel-Red Road, Bellevue. American. Breakfast ($5 to $7) 7 to 11 a.m. Monday through Saturday; 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sunday; Lunch ($4 to $8) 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Saturday; no lunch Sunday. Dinner ($4 to $13) 4 to 10 p.m. Monday through Saturday; 2 to 9 p.m. Sunday. Lounge, full liquor. Major credit cards. Nonsmoking area. Reservations (for parties of five or more): 775-5485 (Lynnwood); 643-1558 (Bellevue). --------------------------------------------------------------- Three reasons persuaded me to go back to the Yankee Diner sooner than I had planned.

The season: Thanksgiving - and for some, thanks would be half-hearted.

The economy: the state and a lot of people in it were in debt or verging on it.

And the postcard:

"Dear John - Just read your article on the uncertainty of the restaurant business. How come it's so hard for the critics and experts to figure out what people want?

"Why, just look at the Yankee Diner, for example. The ONLY thing that surprises me is how they can stand the constant pressure. Five other businesses could survive on the customers that the Diner spills. Unfortunately, there are not five other businesses that know what the Diner is doing.

"P.S. - Hint: I will never pay $50 (for two) for meager portions of Southern European peasant food again."

It was signed P.C.D. of Kirkland.

Tom Singleton's Yankee Diners are a respite from hard times in a hard season. The postcard writer was right. On the average night, the parking lots are filled by 5 p.m., even with rain pelting down, tree limbs sailing and traffic lights out.

The meals are good - at times, very good - always substantial and the prices are blessedly kind. You can feed a family without taking out a loan or topping out the credit card.

The main reason I went back, however, was because I think the Yankee Diners serve one of the best inexpensive turkey dinners around, and if you plan to get one, you ought to make reservations (for parties of five or larger) about one minute from now. Resume reading in two minutes.

No linen-tabled elegance will greet you. A swarm of waiting diners will cram the entry, complete with tumbling toddlers. The decorations on the wall are Life magazine covers from the '30s and '40s and apple-box labels from long-gone orchards and the smoke in the lounge is ferocious . . .

But the turkey is first class.

The mashed potatoes are real.

The soups are hearty.

The biscuits are hot; the preserves are splendid.

The dessert's included.

And you can get it all for under 10 bucks.

We are going to see more places like this in coming months - maybe in coming years. Substantial, honest food hustled out by hard-working waitresses. An inexpensive house wine. A dedication to serving families (including Grandma and Grandpa) without frills, but with enthusiasm and substance.

The Turkey Dinner usually sells for $7.95 but an enhanced version will go for $9.95 next Thursday. On my last visit, the serving consisted of four large slices of breast meat, three pieces of dark meat, thigh chunks, a considerable heap of sage dressing, a larger mound of excellent mashed potatoes, gravy sloshed over most of it, some indifferent green peas blighted with sliced, boiled onions, cranberries, some sliced beets on a spinach leaf for accent . . .

And I ate most of it.

The turkey was first-rate: tender, moist and not at all dried out. The dressing was tasty but soggy; they can do a better job with it. The veggies were OK. Augmented by the hot biscuits, home-made blackberry jam and sips of a chilled California wine, it was a demonstration of what volume feeding can be like when it is serious and accomplished.

A special dining experience? Far from it. Fun? Yes. Value? You bet.

The Yankee Diner will offer an alternative to turkey for those less traditional. For the same price they are slicing up honey-cured hams. The version I tried featured two slices (about a quarter-inch thick) of grill-seared ham, quite juicy and fork tender. They are covered with what is described as a rum-pineapple sauce. It is tasty enough, but I failed to detect any residual traces of rum. A serving of boiled red potatoes was seriously overboiled. This time the green peas were accented with diced red pepper.

The Diner makes its own pies - pumpkin is featured Thursday - and they are respectable. One of their standard desserts is "Wiskey" Bread Pudding, included with all dinners. Bread puddings are bland by nature, but these are unnaturally bland.

I don't know why the lower the prices on the menu, the higher the volume of tobacco smoke is in a restaurant. But that formula holds sadly true here. The Diner does an excellent job of separating the smokers from the nonsmokers (with plate glass in the Lynnwood place) but if you are thinking about avoiding the waiting crowd in the foyer and ducking into the lounge, unless you are a smoker, forget it.

The cigarette machine is right alongside the jukebox and as far as I could tell it was getting equal play.