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O'Rourke's Diner728 Main St. Middletown 06457 King's Avenue 860-346-6101 By STEVE & LISA ALCAZARI Hartford Advocate Published: 4/8/05 They've achieved a kind of perfection at O'Rourke's in Middletown. By sucker punching you into expecting standard hash-house fare -- with the vintage-diner vibe straight out of Edward Hopper's "Nighthawks," the affordable prices and the cool atmosphere complete with those old booth-side mini jukeboxes -- you are that much more blown away to have luxurious gourmet breakfast specialties served in such a decidedly unstuffy setting. I'll go out on a limb: You will not eat like this at any other diner, anywhere. Gravlax, Irish bacon, fresh-baked soda bread, andouille sausage, exotic omelets, poached eggs with Mornay sauce -- at a roadside diner? It just doesn't happen. Lisa and I stopped in for a casual and first-rate lunch at O'Rourke's last week. To do the place justice, one should probably make a pilgrimage for an in-depth weekend breakfast. In the past, late on a Saturday night, I've set my alarm unreasonably early for the next morning to avoid the long lines outside O'Rourke's. We've stood huddled with Wesleyan students in the rain outside the shiny little railroad-car diner waiting for a booth to open up. We've knocked knees underneath the cramped tables. We've sat across from seemingly crazy people who cackled as they scribbled into sketchbooks. It's all worth it. But lunch is great, too. And a weekday visit at lunchtime offers all of O'Rourke's charm without any of the jockeying for seats. Flipping through the jukebox offerings we realized O'Rourke's is probably the only place where, for a few quarters, customers can enjoy strains of Afroman's "Because I Got High" or any of a number of Christmas favorites (in April) by Elvis or Jose Feliciano. Servers at O'Rourke's deliver small plates of soda bread or pound cake to your table while you look over the menu -- one of the numerous smart little touches. And it's a good idea, because looking over the menu can require considerable time and energy. O'Rourke's has been written up everywhere. It's been featured in USA Today, Gourmet, Yankee Magazine and U.S. News and World Report. It's a favorite of road-food experts Jane and Michael Stern. We've been covering this beat for over three years now, and O'Rourke's has been reviewed by several of our predecessors. As the place closes in on its 60th anniversary, they're still the masters of that peculiar mix of high and low -- like omelets with prosciutto, pear and blue cheese served in a down-to-earth setting. We sampled the soup specials of the day -- split pea with ham, and lentil with sweet potato. The ham flavor asserted itself in the split pea soup, which was unfortunately not very hot. A lovely mix of subtle colors -- white and black sesame seeds, bits of what could have been collard greens, and smooth bits of orange sweet potato -- went nicely against the brown lentil soup. O'Rourke's famous steamed cheeseburgers, served on a roll with a generous but not overwhelming amount of melted cheese, deserve their notoriety. As I was blissfully chomping away at my burger, one of the assistant cooks was stepping out the front door for a smoke break when he looked at my plate and asked me if I had ever had one of them before. "They're a little different," he said. True. No crispness or char from the grill, instead it's all about the juicy beef. Lisa tried what she said was perhaps the best fish and chips she'd ever had. The batter looked to have a hint of cornmeal to add flavor and a speckled look, but not enough to make it spongy. Nor was the fish coated in a too-crisp shell-like exterior. Though one has come to expect superfluous garnishes, a lovely little arrangement of fresh berries adorned the plate. For dessert, there was something called "raspberry surprise" written on the specials board. And what a surprise it was. Walking past our booth, chef Brian O'Rourke's told us that sometimes "the spirit" moved him to get creative with the desserts. This time it had moved him to make a raspberry and apple scone with mascarpone cheese, served with a side of raspberry preserves and fresh whipped cream. A perfect crispy exterior gave way to moist layers, with bits of fruit. It didn't hit you over the head with sweetness, but it was fantastic. So, in case you're wondering, O'Rourke's is still a treasure. Hours: Mon.-Fri., 5 a.m.-2 p.m. Sat.-Sun., 5 a.m.-1 p.m. Map | Printer-Friendly Page | Email to a Friend
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