Grumpy’s sets Nov 28 reopening date

Grumpy’s Restaurant owners Dell and Courtney Hoard told the Middleburg Civic Association that they plan to reopen the eatery near the intersection of Blanding Boulevard and Baxley Road on Nov. 28.

On Jan. 19, an electrical fire gutted the Middleburg restaurant. Work started on the rebuild in September. The diner first opened in October 2020.

Dell Hoard said the couple initially slated the reopening for Nov. 21, but the start of a new Grumpy’s in Neptune Beach delayed the Middleburg launch.

“We use a lot of the same suppliers and contractors,” Hoard explained.

He added that a fifth Jacksonville-area Grumpy’s is on tap for Wildlight in Yulee. The restaurant’s other northeast Florida locations are on Orange Park’s Kingsley Avenue and off County Road 210 in St. Johns County.

Hoard said many of his Middleburg employees have been working at other Grumpy’s locations in the Jacksonville area while contractors rebuilt his restaurant.