American Diner Featured in Barichara

De Tin Marin offers two levels of dining in a 1950's
American diner atmosphere near Parque Cementerio.

The fascination with the American early Rock n' Roll scene has caused some enterprising Colombians to re-create an American diner here in Barichara, complete with hamburgers, french fries and the real Coca-cola in bottles, not cans.

Just up from the cathedral, near the Parque Cementerioat Carrera 6a No. 2-50, you are in for a surprise.

Tonight on my walk I discovered a new and fun restaurant, "De Tin Marin," (roughly translated, I believe, from the child's game of 'eeney, meeney, miney, moe' used when you are trying to pick/choose something or someone) is now open for business but not enough people know about it so no one was eating just then. The staff was pleased to have me come and take pictures and if I had planned properly I would have also had something to eat - it smelled wonderful inside!

Superman, hand-wringing washers, barber chairs, jukeboxes and so
much more will catch your eyes and memories (if you are old enough) at
De Tin Marin in Barichara, Santander, Colombia.

With two levels, there is seating for about 60 or so people with a red, white and black decor and the wonderful metallic round stools and tall tables, plus comfortable booth dining harking back to the mid-50's.  It is not easy to find the American gas pumps, barber chairs and other fun items of that period here, so I can only guess that some of these items came from someone's collection.

A basic hamburger is $5,000 COPs (about $2.75 USD) and a 'perro sencillo' (hot dog) is about the same. There will be shrimp cocktail for $10,000 ($5.75 USD) and arepas and patacon as well in the same price range as the burgers and dogs. Drinks range from $1,500 (one mil cinco) for a 'pop' (gaseosa in Spanish) to $40,000 for a flacon of red wine (merlot or cabernet). For the heavy hitters, there will be Chivas Regal whiskey in 375 cc glasses at $60,000 COPs, a little over $36 USD, I'd guess, if the exchange rate stays about where it is now. Not exactly what you'd find in an American diner then or now, but this is supposed to be entertainment after all.

"The Flying Horse" from Mobilgas was a
hit on my memory from the '50's in another
place far from Colombia.

This week is the precursor to the week of Semana Santa, so Barichara will be filling up with plenty of people from outside visiting and I am sure this will turn out to be a hot spot with a jukebox playing some of the "Oldies" and goodies from 5 -10 p.m. Monday night through Thursday and from 5-12 on the weekends. Don't know if there will be anyone dancing the jitterbug, but perhaps I could go and give lessons.

It crossed my mind that perhaps they will get so busy they'd like to have an authentic 'be-bopper' chewing gum, in bobby sox and a poodle skirt running around taking orders in English... it was just an idea - but an ancient teenager? Probably would be better if I just go and sit and quietly have one of the hamburguesas and remember what it was like all those decades ago when the Peterborough Diner was still in operation, the movie theatre was next to the Mobil gas station that 'Jeep' ran and a Coke was a different drink than it is today.