After feeding travelers 24/7 for 52 years, Hermon truck stop shortens diner hours
Courtesy / Dysart's via Facebook
Dysart's Truck Stop will shorten hours beginning next month at its restaurant, which has operated 24/7 for over 50 years.
Dysart’s Truck Stop and Restaurant in Hermon, which has served “home-cooked comfort food” to hungry travelers 24 hours a day since 1967, will shorten its hours beginning Oct. 1.
The well-known diner, just off Interstate 95, will be open from 5 a.m. to midnight, seven days a week, according to a news release Wednesday. Dysart’s fueling station and convenience store will remain open 24/7.
Mary Dysart Hartt, co-owner of Dysart’s, said the restaurant has seen a decline in the number of late-night patrons, partly as a result of changes in trucking laws and reductions in overnight work shifts at area businesses.
Trucking laws do not require drivers to be off the road after a certain time, but they do require 10 hours of off-duty time each day. Generally, drivers use that time overnight.
“This is something we have kicked around for years,” Hartt said in the release. “The late night landscape has shifted over time … With all of those changes, and even though the rest of the day remains very strong, we just aren’t seeing enough business between midnight and 5 a.m. to justify keeping the restaurant open overnight.
“As a business, and as difficult as it is, we must adapt to the changing times. It will feel very odd to turn off the lights for a few hours that first night, but we know it’s in the best interest of our business and employees.”
In addition to the restaurant, fueling station and convenience store, the truck stop at 530 Coldbrook Road, near Interstate Exit 180, offers a full-service garage, automated truck/camper wash, truckers lounge and even stamps and mail service.
Dysart’s also operates several smaller stops in central and northern Maine, and opened a Bangor restaurant in 2014. That eatery is not open 24/7, and is unaffected by the change.
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