Ponzio's (on Route 70 in Cherry Hill) tries to straddle the fine line between restaurant and diner.

The menu is a diner menu, with diner prices. But there is a hostess stand when you come in where you have to put your name on the list. Instead of "smoking" and "non-smoking," they have divided up the place into rooms with names, like the "Terrace Room" and the "Garden Room." They serve liquor, and even have a small bar/club type area, where you can wait to be seated. Wait! To be seated! Clearly we are one step up from diner here.

But I think we still have to consider Ponzio's a diner - maybe a diner with delusions of grandeur. The food is good. The waitstaff has been nice, if maybe a little scatterbrained. I recall a few order mix-ups on more than one occasion. They are also not open 24 hours, and the staff can get a little hover-y when it gets close to quitting time. One of the best reasons to go to Ponzio's is the desserts. They have an in-house bakery, and its menu is extensive and delectable. I think the first thing I ever ate from Ponzio's was before I ever stepped foot in the place. Buddy had some leftover cake from a party that he had gotten there. It was a chocolate layer cake, and between the layers was layers of cheesecake. CHEESECAKE!! If you have ever been to a diner with me, you know that I am something of a cheesecake fanatic. There was also frosting on this cake. FROSTING!! I am also a frosting fanatic.

We have only been to Ponzio's a handful of times. Mike and I started out going to dinner there, but he prefers some of the other diners better. We also hung out there a few times in the late night. But in general, it is not in heavy rotation. I like the place, though, so I will give it

One of those cups is for the cheesecake cake alone.