Mel’s Diner continues to function as a welcome waystation in the pursuit of dreams in Alice’s fifth hit season. Ex-Mel gal Belle (Diane Ladd) continues to keep the service staff up to snuff in style and sass, while Alice continues to raise Tommy and chase her singing career, and Vera keeps on being…well, Vera. The baton gets passed mid-season, as Alice helps lady truck driver Jolene (Celia Weston) escape a bad business partner just in time for Jolene to replace Belle, who has hit the road with her brother’s band.

Among the celebrity diners visiting Mel’s this season are Robert Goulet (as himself), Mildred Natwick, Martha Raye, Ruth Buzzi, and a returning Jerry Reed (as himself). This 3-disc, 22-episode collection contains the entire fifth season as originally produced, plus “Mel’s Cousin, Wendell” and “Vera and the Bouncing Check,” which both originally aired during the series’ sixth season.