greasy spoon

American  

noun

Slang.

1. a cheap and rather unsanitary restaurant.

---

greasy spoon British  

noun

1. slang a small, cheap, and often unsanitary restaurant, usually specializing in fried foods

---

greasy spoon Idioms  

1. A cheap restaurant, especially one serving short-order fried foods. For example, College students short of cash tend to eat a lot in that greasy spoon. This expression also implies that the restaurant is not very clean. [c. 1900]

---

Etymology

Origin of greasy spoon

An Americanism dating back to 1920–25

Example Sentences

That same greasy spoon appears in other TV and movie shots, including a scene with Meg Ryan in “Sleepless in Seattle.”

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 16, 2026

But even if that wasn’t true, the etiquette is the same at a high-end restaurant as it is at your local greasy spoon.

From Slate • Oct. 13, 2023

Casual diners ordered meatloaf and burgers at the local greasy spoon.

From Los Angeles Times • May 3, 2023

At its height, the 24/7 greasy spoon was going through 450,000 eggs a year, said a May 28, 2014, Seattle Times story.

From Seattle Times • Feb. 1, 2023

Then we go to a dinner club that makes the Buster look like a greasy spoon.

From Probability by Trimble, Louis