With Downyflake Demolition Set For Fall, Owners Weighing Options For Its Next Chapter

When The Downyflake shuts its doors next month, it may not be the end of the iconic island restaurant, but it will certainly close one chapter in its storied 90-year history.

The building on Sparks Avenue where The Downyflake has been located since the mid-1990s will soon be demolished to make way for the so-called “new downtown” mixed-use development that was recently approved by the Planning Board and Historic District Commission.

Pate Kennedy and Ron Oldham, who have owned The Downyflake since 2014 after taking the torch from prior owners Mark Hogan and Susan Tate, are unsure what the future holds but would like to see The Downyflake carry on as it has been for decades: a family-run dining establishment for the year-round community.

They’ve discussed the possibility of an alternative location for the restaurant while the stretch of Sparks Avenue is demolished and remade. They’ve also contemplated selling the name and business to the next steward of The Downyflake.

Oldham and Kennedy, both decades-long veterans of the island restaurant industry who are now in their 70s, own the name and the business. They believe The Downyflake will live on after the Sparks Avenue location is demolished this fall.

“It’s bittersweet,” said Kennedy, who previously managed the Rope Walk on Straight Wharf, working for the late Joe Pantorno, and before that worked at the Atlantic Cafe on South Water Street. “We want it to stay the same as much as possible, we’re committed to that. And I’m not really worried about it, because I think Chris is too.”

Kennedy was referring to Chris Fiumara, the owner of Boston-based Crowd Lending Inc., and the lead developer of the residential-commercial development on Sparks Avenue. Fiumara and his partner Daniel Najarian have secured approvals to construct the mixed-use buildings on lots stretching from 18 to 26 Sparks Avenue, including the area where The Downyflake restaurant is currently located up to the Cumberland Farms property. The new development will feature two buildings that will include 32 housing units, a restaurant, along with an eight-lane bowling alley.

Fiumara wants to see that restaurant remain as The Downyflake.

“It will be The Downyflake,” Fiumara said confidently. “I will be 100 percent on top of making sure that happens. I’ve talked to three or four potential operators, people who are looking to go in and continue the tradition. They (Kennedy and Oldham) will be talking to them, I’ll facilitate that, because they’re willing and want to continue the tradition of the island.”

Fiumara said he hopes to have the lots cleared by the end of November, and to start construction by February 2025 if all goes according to plan.

The Downyflake has been an island staple since it opened in 1935 on South Water Street and has changed hands several times over the years. In 1965 it was sold by Gordon MacDonald to Karsten Reinemo Sr., and the Reinemo family expanded it from a seasonal restaurant into a year-round business. In 1991, the South Water Street location was destroyed in a gas explosion. After relocating and rebuilding The Downyflake on Sparks Avenue, the Reinemos sold the business to Mark Hogan and Susan Tate, who ran it for two decades before passing the torch to Kennedy and Oldham.

Today The Downyflake, Kennedy said, is like a family. Her staff, many of whom have been at the restaurant for many years and in some cases decades, are all aware of the situation with the demolition and what could come next. The goal now is to make it through Columbus Day weekend, she said, and start emptying the building. And yes, the iconic donut sign that hangs on the facade will be staying with them.

“We’re not spring chickens anymore - we have to be wise about what we do next,” Kennedy said. “We’re fine with everything. We’re just hanging loose right now. When we bought The Downyflake name and business, it was a 10-year plan and this was our eleventh year.”

Oldham said the looming closure this fall has started to dawn on some of his customers, while others are oblivious to the pending demolition of the building. He thinks about how the change will impact his regulars, many of whom he sees on a weekly or daily basis at the restaurant.

“It’s like being a bartender, you know what they’re going to order,” Oldham said. “When I see someone come in, I’ll start it up and before it’s ordered, I’ll be serving it.”