Watch out Magnolia Cafe and Kerbey Lane: there’s a new restaurant competing for the late-night crowd. Located on Sixth Street and North Lamar, 24 Diner recently opened as a new and eloquent take on traditional comfort food.

“We wanted a place where someone can get chicken and waffles and not break the bank,” said Billy Caruso, assistant manager.

24 Diner replaced the Waterloo Ice House next to Waterloo Records. The new owners completely revamped the location, introducing a stylish new décor that combines the classic American diner with a distinctly modern flair. Despite this upgrade in class, 24 Diner is still within most peoples’ price range, staying true to Caruso’s word.

24 Diner’s mission of making comfort food and traditional American diner cuisine with the highest quality organic ingredients may seem odd at first. But observing Caruso’s passion for the food at the diner is all the proof one needs that 24 Diner is very serious about serving excellent food.

Caruso also spoke about one of the very obvious differences between 24 Diner and other late night eateries: waffles versus pancakes.

“That was a food battle,” he laughed, continuing the food-war metaphor. “Every restaurant has its food battles, and that was our breakfast food battle. You either have pancakes or waffles. You pick one, and you make sure you make it good. We picked waffles.”

Waffles aren’t the only dish that sets 24 Diner apart from Magnolia Cafe or Kerbey Lane. Chicken pot pie, Swiss chard and artichoke gratin, fried risotto cakes, and other unexpected culinary treats are all available at 24 Diner, and most for under $10.

I went to 24 Diner after a particularly punishing stretch of classes from 9:30 a.m. to 1:45 p.m. Needless to say, I was hungry. I brought two friends along so we could try a variety of foods, including vegetarian options.

We started the meal with a roasted banana and brown sugar milkshake. The only word to describe it would be “sinful.” The shake was thick, rich, and more than enough to be split three ways. As a nice touch, the chef put whipped cream and whole graham cracker pieces on top. Just as we finished the milkshake, our dishes were brought out.

I ordered chicken and waffles, a soul food staple. I was deeply intimidated by the sheer size of the portions they brought out: two huge pieces of boneless fried chicken and one very large waffle. The chicken was fried just right, with little excess grease but plenty of moisture. The waffle, made with dough and not batter according to Caruso,  stayed surprisingly crunchy despite the pure maple syrup I poured on it (not to mention some chicken grease and butter—I wasn’t going for healthiness in my order.)

The chicken and waffles made for a real culinary treat, but also plenty of leftovers. Even in my hunger-addled state, I couldn’t finish half of the plate.

One friend ordered a veggie burger. I was a little skeptical of the burger (the beets it contained made it appear red) and I was not so impressed by its taste. She also ordered macaroni and cheese, which had a light coat of breadcrumbs and chives; unlike the burger, it was mighty tasty.

Another friend ordered a club sandwich with french fries. I wasn’t lucky enough to try the sandwich, but the fries were perfectly cooked, crunchy and hot but thick enough so they stored little grease.

In all, I found 24 Diner to be an excellent addition to Austin’s  late-night restaurant scene, but be prepared to shell out a few extra dollars. Since all the ingredients are organic and local, the price runs about two to three dollars more than Magnolia and Kerbey Lane—but it’s worth the minor splurge.

In addition to serving great food, Caruso stressed the restaurant is as much a place for friends as it is food.  The restaurant is open 24 hours a day, 6 days a week (they close from 2 a.m. to 5 a.m. on Tuesdays for deep cleaning).

“I wanted a place for people to hang out. We’re all about love, peace and chicken grease,” Caruso said.