24 Diner fulfills both the city’s need for all-night dining and its desire for “sole” food (sustainable, organic, local, and ethical). The décor is minimalist-sexy—exposed pipes and big, light-filtering windows—but playful, in its basketball-materialed seats and awesome counter, from which you can read the list of daily Texas bounty. Prices are high for the execution, but worth the 2am convenience and environmental benefit.

The food tastes cleaner than diner food, for better or worse. Mac and cheese is average, so is egg salad (salt it yourself); but the house-ground burger is great, on an absorbant challah bun. Good pot pie, greasy grilled cheese, and so on. Breakfast is a cut above the served-all-day competition: fluffy Bourbon-vanilla waffles, and plump, porky sausage patties. Farm-fresh eggs are best scrambled here; poached come watery and stiff. Homemade hash has sublime chunks of brisket, but frittatas unevenly filled with local vegetables and cheese can taste bland and eggy. But the coffee is great and the service chipper and adorable. Beer and wine are a step above even fancy restaurants, offering the likes of La Fin du Monde and Lagunitas, local Real Ale, and even a Saison. Wines are interesting, well chosen, and economical. Can you say as much for your other diner go-tos?

Note that they are closed 1:30am–6am Wed., for cleaning.