I think what I miss the most is Restaurants that were owned and operated on a small scale by a person or family. As much as I possibly can these are the places that I seek and when I find one that I like I will be a regular there. I love places that are like the cheers song about someplace where everybody knows your name.
When I first moved to this tiny town there was a place called Jake and Hoers Place. This was a real-time old school operation. Jake was a farmer and Homer and her Daughter ran the Restaurant. Basically, it was just one big room so you were eating in the kitchen at a kitchen table. They had a row of crockpots with all the fresh vegetables you might want and they were a, help yourself, sort of thing, and were not charged for. They came right off the farm as did the fresh salad that was also there and free. You ordered your meat and they cooked it right then. Homer and sometimes her granddaughter were the waitresses and Homer made sure that your tea glass either sweet or unsweetened never went dry. She was one of those everyone's Granny sorts and once you became a regular, hugs were served up along with home cooking style food. It was almost predictable that about sundown Jake would show up with cantaloupe or watermelons and they were served free if you wanted them. she always had an assortment of pies that were a part of the meal. This was the place that I always took my parents when they came to visit. My Dad especially just loved the place and Homer was always tickled to see them.
I SEEK these places. they still exist in the back roads of small towns but they are dying out. I am most happy where I can walk in give the owner or waitress a hug and go behind the counter and grab a cup of coffee before going to my table. I am always a VERY good tipper and they take VERY good care of me.