Denny's New Mobile Relief Diner Is On Its Way To The Carolinas

Denny's is pitching in to help those impacted by Hurricane Florence in North and South Carolina with the brand's new Mobile Relief Diner. The new 53-foot custom-built traveling kitchen had its first successful test-run in Northern California during this summer's fires, and now Denny's is bringing the vehicle to those in need on the opposite coast. The mobile kitchen will serve free hot meals to residents, first responders, volunteers, and others.

The Best Pancakes In Every State

This is the second version of the Mobile Relief Diner; the first was used in 2017 to bring relief to survivors of Hurricane Harvey and Hurricane Irma in Houston and South Florida, but the temporary vehicle was retired afterward.

Now the South Carolina-based brand has re-made the diner to be more serviceable. The new and improved version of the vehicle houses a fully-functional kitchen that was designed to travel anywhere in the U.S. during emergency situations. The diner will serve hot pancake breakfasts including bacon, coffee, and drinks. Denny's plans to work with local officials and disaster relief organizations to determine which areas are most in need in the future.

"At Denny's, our brand purpose is rooted in the fact that we love to feed people — and have ever since our company was founded in 1953," said John Dillon, chief marketing officer for Denny's in an emailed press release. "While we deliver on that brand purpose every day inside of our restaurants, the Mobile Relief Diner allows us do what we do best by going out into local communities to offer a hot and comforting meal during a time when they could really use it the most."

While Denny's is headed to the Carolinas, super chef José Andrés is already on the ground with his team from the nonprofit World Central Kitchen, providing hot meals to at shelters and distribution centers across the eastern part of the state. On September 17, the chef tweeted that World Central Kitchen had served 80,000 meals so far.

Popular chain Waffle House is also feeding those affected by the storms. As reported by Fox News, CEO Walt Ehmer brought in 150 extra employees as part of an emergency response team who will keep the restaurants in the area open and servicable. 

Ehmer was praised by Andrés for his efforts via Twitter.

Denny's Mobile Relief Diner is also on Twitter, providing real-time updates on their current location.

Denny's clearly cares about the welfare of its diners. Here are nine other things you didn't know about the American-style diner.