What's happening
A New Name for a Place You Already Call Home
We're moving into a new building and a new chapter. With a new name, a more relaxed atmosphere, and a menu that's growing along with us. We're planning to open the doors in 2027.
This isn't the diner closing. It's the diner growing up. We wanted a simple way to share the news, show you what's coming, and keep you in the loop before our full website goes live.
A Local Gathering Place
For years, Richland Railroad Diner has been a place where regulars know the staff by name, where families come back week after week, and where conversations happen across tables just as easily as they do at home. Junction 27 is being built around that same feeling. A relaxed place to sit down, catch up, and feel like you belong – because you do.
A look back...
The building has been home to a local restaurant under a few different names, including Skippy's and Sandy's. A fire in 1960 changed the building's story, and the current building went up in 1960 and 1961 to keep serving the community. In April 2018, the Horst family — including Derek, who had worked in food service since he was 16 — bought the restaurant, wanting to keep its doors open for the community that had grown up around it. Derek was 18 at the time, and that same care for good food and good people has shaped the diner ever since. The railroad running through town has always been part of the story, too — including a building that shakes just a little every time a train comes through.
Why "Junction 27"?
A junction is a place where two or more things meet—and that’s exactly what this next chapter is about. Junction 27 brings together the diner’s railroad roots, its future as a modern, relaxed restaurant, and the year we’re planning to open our doors: 2027.
But more than just a name, Junction 27 is about bringing people together—around good food, great friends, and the kind of conversations and memories that make a place feel like home. It’s a name that looks forward without leaving the story behind, while creating a place where people can gather, connect, and enjoy being together.
A NEW BUILDING
Built for What's Ahead
Junction 27 is moving into a new building with a modern, train-station-inspired feel — exposed beams, an industrial touch, and a warm, relaxed atmosphere.
The goal is simple: keep the local feeling you already know, in a space built to grow with the community for years to come.
Some things are changing.
A lot is staying exactly the same.
Staying the same:
- The people who've always been here
- Attentive, friendly service
- Good food you can count on
- A place where regulars are family
Changing:
- A new name: Junction 27
- A new building with a modern, relaxed feel
- A new menu: A new kitchen space with room for more equipment gives us opportunities to be more creative with our menu offerings
- A more train-station-inspired atmosphere, exposed beams and all
- The heart behind the diner isn't changing. Just the space it gets to grow in
Stay in the loop
We'll be sharing updates as Junction 27 comes together – new photos, renderings, and news on when the doors open.
Follow along at EatAtJ27.com and thank you for being part of the story so far.