A Decade After Closing, Famous Rosie’s Diner Now Up for Sale

It's been a decade since Rosie's Pub off 14 mile road in Rockford shut their doors. However, whether due to nostalgia or just wanting to preserve a piece of history, the current owners have now decided to put up the 'For Sale' sign.

The Detroit Free Press did an incredible article on the history of Rosie's Diner which you can read here.

From what I've read, Rosie's diner has had a following for quite some time. According to the Detroit Free Press article, people online even rallied to save it back in 2017. Unfortunately, it looks like that was unsuccessful.

Why Did it Close in the First Place?

Even being from Florida, I've heard mentions of a little diner called 'Rosie's'. Was it this exact diner in Rockford? Who knows. What I do know is that people seem to crave the nostalgic. Which is why its no surprise to me that people were fighting so hard to save this little diner car.

While diner cars were mostly popular in the 1920's - 1940's, Rosie's has been sitting in her location since the 1990's when she was moved there by Jerry Berta. Jerry, who told Detroit Free Press that he never intended to run it, kept Rosie's open from 1991 to 2006 when he sold it to the next owners, Jonelle and Randy Roest.

What's Going to Happen To It?

The current owner, Aaron Koehn, is apparently looking to sell the dining car so that he can use the land for his nearby car dealership.

Koehn, who has conducted tours of the famous roadside diner, said that things changed when the pandemic hit,

I had a very difficult time during the pandemic controlling (the vandalism) and getting anybody to help board it up. And there’s been a lot of damage that’s been done.

In that regard, I completely understand wanting to sell. Koehn told the Detroit Free Press that, structurally, Rosie's is sound and that he's had offers from all over the United States.

The good news is that since it's a diner car, moving Rosie's to a different location isn't impossible.

Perhaps it'll be sold to a museum. Maybe the community will rally together to purchase it to preserve a small slice of history. Regardless, Rosie's awaits it's next chapter.

Again, you can read the full story from the Detroit Free Press here.

Speaking of nostalgia, do you remember any of these now closed retail stores?