The College Park Cafe has been a mainstay in Orlando for more than 70 years. But in one instant on Christmas Eve morning, everything started to go catastrophically wrong.

First, a buildup of grease behind the stove caught fire. Then the fire-suppression system failed, with the sprinklers not producing the solvents specifically designed to put out such fires. The fire extinguishers, supposedly serviced and ready, were the last fail-safe.

“They were all empty,” said co-owner Joey Eckenfels. “So we didn’t have a choice but to run.”

The result was a total loss of the kitchen, including the primary cooking line where all the food is prepared.

But thanks to the generosity of the community it has served for decades, the beloved neighborhood restaurant is slated to reopen as soon as Jan. 10.

“We sold coffee on the street yesterday, just to bring in a little cash for the employees,” said co-owner Joey Eckenfels. “Someone threw a $100 bill out the window.”

The College Park Cafe calls itself the oldest diner in Orlando, dating back to 1951 when it opened as Clara Johnson’s College Park restaurant, with an Orchid Room banquet hall next door. It became the College Park Cafe in the 1980s under a new family’s ownership.

After a brief period as a Cuban restaurant, Eckenfels and his business partner Alan Saunders bought the place in 2021 and restored it to its nostalgic mid-century look.

“We saw the potential,” Eckenfels said.

He and Saunders crafted a menu of “classic American diner favorites and hearty breakfast favorites,” according to the restaurant’s website, as well as vegetarian entrees and a few Cuban and Tex-Mex dishes.

College Park residents, he said, “want their classic, simple food. They’re not looking for any frills. And they want the community. To have the opportunity to own a little slice of Americana, if you will.”

Customers have shown their loyalty in turn. “We’ve had people who’ve been coming since the ‘50s, and they’re still eating here with their grandkids or great-grandkids,” Eckenfels said. It’s just a special place.”

The day of the fire, though, he had his doubts that the restaurant would survive.

“I was like, ‘I don’t know if we’re gonna be able to recover from this, just because the buildout is so expensive,’” he said.

But from day one, the neighborhood has come together to help. Regulars frequently swing by to give hugs and share some coffee. An employee started a GoFundMe campaign to help pay staff which has brought in more than $2,700. Patrons have even helped with reconstruction.

“There’s a guy that used to own a company that did gas lines, and he’s providing a lot of equipment to us to help reduce those costs,” Eckenfels said. “The gentleman you just saw in here was our food rep, so he’s working on things on the back end to save us. It’s just been a little bit of everything. There’s a lot of heart here.”

On social media, customers shared their support. “We know you will be back better than ever,” one wrote on Facebook.

“You will rise like a phoenix from the ashes,” wrote another. “Wonderful cafe, see you on the other side.”

When the restaurant reopens, however, one thing will be different.

“We’ve taken it back to those historic roots of a traditional diner,” he said. “So it’s going to be renamed College Park Diner when we reopen. We’re going to bring back some of the nostalgia.”