O'Rourke's Diner was a

diner A diner is a type of restaurant found across the United States and Canada, as well as parts of Western Europe and Australia. Diners offer a wide range of cuisine, mostly American cuisine, a casual atmosphere, and, characteristically, a comb ...

located in the Main Street Historic District in

Middletown, Connecticut Middletown is a city in Middlesex County, Connecticut, United States. Located along the Connecticut River, in the central part of the state, 16 miles (25.749504 km) south of Hartford, Connecticut, Hartford. Middletown is the largest city in the L ...

History

The diner was established in 1941 by John O'Rourke, who later brought the 1946 Mountain View diner car that anchored the diner's distinctive appearance into Middletown. John's nephews, John and Brian bought the diner in 1976. In 1986, due to corrupted business practices, John sold his half share of the diner to his cousin Brian. On August 31, 2006, O'Rourke's Diner suffered tremendous damage from a fire that broke out after a hamburger steamer was left on overnight. Because the diner did not have fire insurance, fundraising efforts were launched to cover the estimated $350,000 cost of repairs. By June 2007, $180,000 had been raised and preparations for reconstruction were underway. On February 11, 2008, following successful renovations which included assistance from the local community and

Wesleyan University Wesleyan University ( ) is a Private university, private liberal arts college, liberal arts university in Middletown, Connecticut, United States. It was founded in 1831 as a Men's colleges in the United States, men's college under the Methodi ...

, O'Rourke's was reopened at 5:00 am. In June 2023, the diner closed once again. As of October 2024, the diner has been listed for sale.

Awards/Distinctions

*2005: Best Diner, Best of Connecticut 2005, ''Connecticut Magazine'' *2008: Featured on

Food Network Food Network is an American basic cable channel owned by Television Food Network, G.P., a unit of Warner Bros. Discovery, who manages and operates it as a division of the Warner Bros. Discovery U.S. Networks Group. The channel airs both televi ...

Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives ''Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives'' (often nicknamed ''Triple D'' and stylized as ''Diners, Drive-Ins, Dives'') is an American food reality television series that has aired on the Food Network since April 23, 2007. It is hosted by Guy Fieri, and in ...

with

Guy Fieri Guy Ramsay Fieri (, ; Ferry; born January 22, 1968) is an American restaurateur, author, and an Emmy Award winning television presenter. He co-owned three now-defunct restaurants in California. He licenses his name to restaurants in cities a ...

References

Dead External links

Rebuilding O'Rourke's
documentary
O'Rourke's
reviews on RoadFood.com
O'Rourke's To Go
restaurant website {{Middletown, Connecticut Buildings and structures in Middletown, Connecticut Diners in Connecticut Tourist attractions in Middlesex County, Connecticut Restaurants established in 1941 Commercial buildings completed in 1946 1946 establishments in Connecticut 2023 disestablishments in Connecticut