Johnny Rockets won't empty your pockets

I love the Inner Harbor: good times with good friends and lots of good food. That is, of course, if you plan ahead. The Harbor Place boasts some of the finest dining Baltimore has to offer: California Pizza Kitchen, Cheesecake Factory, City Lights Seafood, Phillips, and that's not to mention some of the longest waits. Fine dining in Baltimore requires planning -- planning or an hour and a half to kill.

But what college student has time to plan for a full-blown dining extravaganza? Not I, that's for sure. Between cheering on my hall mate Bryce as he suffered broken bones for the sake of spaghetti (Bridge Building Competition, for all you non-engineers) and showing a capella solidarity with my "Podes at the Vocal Chords concert, I was surprised I found time to drag five friends to the Harbor!

So, in the spirit of celerity (and mainly because I had five starving students on my hands), my band and I traveled a little off the beaten dining path and found ourselves in the Light Street Pavilion Food Court. But this is not your ordinary McDonald's and a Pizza Hut. Besides boasting the celebrated City Lights Seafood, Phillips and Capital City Brewing Company, the food court offers a full culinary tour, from the ethnically varied Greek and Thai establishments.

But what self-respecting group of Hopkins students treks all the way downtown just to eat in a shopping mall food court? Not I, again I say. Nestled unassumingly between Phillips Seafood Buffet and the Vaccaro's cookie cart (of which I consumed some samples) we discovered good old-fashioned Johnny Rockets, a collegiate dining tradition.

This little 1950s-style diner, reminiscent of drive-up hamburger joints and waitresses on roller skates, serves up some of the best burgers and shakes Baltimore has to offer. Sparkling chrome countertops and pressed white uniforms glisten just like the blanket of cheese on those ooey-gooey chili fries.

I was already well acquainted with this heart-attack heaven (there are two near my hometown, including one about half a block from the Gap and restaurant where I worked), and knew this would be the perfect place to satisfy my hungry crowd.

The menu is famous for its burgers and fries, complete with chili, cheese or any topping you so desire. The malts and milkshakes are churned fresh right before you -- that is, if you opt for one of these creamy concoctions over an authentic soda fountain Vanilla Coke (no cans here!). Johnny Rockets offers a variety of non-beefy entrees as well, including crispy chicken tenders, good old egg salad sandwiches and Nathan's hot dogs.

But calorie counter beware: This grub hails from the days before cholesterol counts. Our table looked like a regular Crisco commercial, but even the health conscious cross-country biker and marathon runner amongst us didn't seem to mind.

Teresa happily devoured her long desired cheeseburger, while Meredith condemned her chili cheese fries as "a heart attack on a plate" between mouthwatering bites.

Johnny Rockets, though a quaint little blast from the past, has managed to jet into the 21st century. Right next to their "Smokehouse" bacon cheeseburger, Rockets offers "Streamliner" veggie burgers, grilled chicken sandwiches and even a garden salad (which for me translated into lettuce and ketchup, but that's another story). The health- conscious eater can also substitute a lean turkey patty in any of the burger choices.

Even the strapped-for cash-college student can appreciate Johnny Rockets 1950s-era prices. A burger, no matter what you may want to top it with -- eggs included --weighs in at about $5; not bad for one-third of a pound of meat.

Sides, like those heavenly onion rings and chili cheese fries, cost about $3, shakes and desserts between $2.50 and $3.

Johnny Rockets is a great Baltimore food find, but not for its rare or localized cuisine. You can find Johnny almost anywhere across the country, and you can stop in for a quick bite next time you're in Kuwait or Cancun. What makes Johnny Rockets stand out from every other burger joint in town is its nostalgic reminders of a time long gone.

Waiters cook each dish made to order, hand churn milkshakes and malts and even pour the ketchup at your table!

So whether you are in the mood for some good old time grub, or even if you just like spinning around on the red vinyl barstools, plucking straws from the authentic glass jar as you listen to the nickel jukebox croon out the King, Johnny Rockets is the place for you. If not, hey, the Vaccaro's stand is less than 10 feet away.