A • Toni “T” Robinson at Marsh Diner recently added banana fritters to the selections available at this not-so-classic diner on South Broadway. “Banana fritters originated in West Africa and soon spread throughout the Caribbean,” Robinson says. “They’re literally mashed overripe bananas, flour, sugar, spices and milk. They’re mixed, pan-fried, and dusted with sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg. It’s vegan, which I love. I understand people in the islands enjoy them for breakfast with coffee or tea. Everyone really liked them here.”

Marsh Diner in the Carondelet neighborhood isn’t your typical diner. It’s part of The Marsh Cooperative, which includes a cooperative grocery store, a network of neighborhood farm plots, and a community gathering place where ideas, design and practices for sustainable living come together.

The diner is open on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Robinson, who goes by T, prepares a rotating selection of breakfast and lunch items each day using local and seasonal produce, much of it grown in the co-op’s four urban gardens.

“We will add Soul Food Sundays the last Sunday of every month, starting June 25,” Robinson says. Even though the diner’s been operating for about three months, it’s planning a grand opening celebration for July 15.

Toni ‘T’ Robinson creates seasonal breakfasts and lunches in the open kitchen that’s at this eat-in or carry-out diner on South Broadway. Service is buffet-style and diners pay by weight for the food, as they would at a salad bar.

“My goal is to make sure anyone with any diet can come in and get a full plate of food. Vegetarian, vegan, even keto is an option if you want to eat that way. If I have a meat dish that day, I have vegetarian and vegan versions as well.”

Robinson is a self-taught cook who grew up with big Sunday dinners after church each week.

“We always have big family gatherings, especially during the holidays — that’s where I learned my culinary skills. I very much think cooking just got ingrained in my spirit.”

Robinson cooked professionally at Camp Barnabas, a camp for disabled individuals, from 2012 to 2017. “Anywhere from 15 to 25 percent of the campers had special dietary needs I was responsible for. In some ways, it was a short-order situation to make sure nothing got cross-wise, so it was great training.”

Although Robinson shapes her menus to use what’s seasonal, the restaurant will be serving banana fritters for the next two weeks.

The Marsh co-op is adjacent to the diner. In fact, there’s a door into the store from the diner, so plan to stop in to buy top of the line organic foods and fresh vegetables from the garden when you visit.