NORTH BEND – After much anticipation, the new ’50s diner in town is ready to rock.

On Nov. 16 RockO’s diner opened at 247 E. North Bend Way. The medley of American favorites served at RockO’s is made by people who know the restaurant business.

Debbie Orr, daughter of Judy Klingel, longtime menu matriarch of North Bend and owner of the recently closed Tift Haus, worked with her mother and other family members in the restaurant business all her life. When the Tift House closed she decided it was time to try opening her own place.

“Mother retired and I was kind of like, what am I going to do? So I got this building, I’ve got a great view of the mountains,” Debbie Orr said. “It’s a good location, right smack dab in the middle of town.”

The restaurant is named after Orr’s husband, Rocky Orr, who even quit his job as a welder to take on his namesake full time.

With the help of family and friends, the Orrs transformed the entirely yellow “hole in the wall” into a vibrant ’50s diner, complete with plans to install a fiberglass ’57 Chevy on the roof, records adorning the walls and a red and white checker motif carried throughout.

The building’s history began about 100 years ago as a popular gas station along the main drag. Over the years it’s been a few different sandwich shops and a coffee shop, but none of the businesses took off.

That was before the Orrs came along.

“Boston won the World Series, so maybe the jinx is off,” Debbie Orr said. “Nobody’s ever made it here, but no one’s ever done what I’m doing.”

RockO’s homemade American menu will include breakfast with the Tift Haus’ famous hashbrowns, the RockO burger, the Son-in-law Burger, a variety of milkshake flavors, muffins and brownies made by Orr’s daughter and daughter-in-law, espresso, the popular Tift Haus pies and much, much more.

The burgers will come with RockO sauce, lettuce, onion and tomato. The Son-in-law Burger includes almost a half-pound of beef, while the RockO Burger is just under a quarter pound. These classic delights can be washed down with Green River soda, a rare beverage from the 1900s the Orrs have managed to scare up for RockO’s.

And though the Tift House is gone, its memory will live on in a few unforgettable dishes offered at RockO’s.

“We have to squeeze in a few items from the Tift Haus for all the old people who’ve been eating there for 100 years,” Debbie Orr said.

Tift Haus throwbacks include breaded veal with light gravy, homemade soups, coleslaw and potato salad. Orr said she’s also cooking up a fabulous kiddy menu. And everything will be available through the drive-up window.

Orr’s daughter, Eileen Debore, will be working the espresso machine, much to the delight of her mom.

“I’ve never poured espresso in my life,” Debbie Orr said. RockO’s will use Seattle’s Best Coffee and offer a free latte after the purchase of six – an easy feat at $2-$2.50 each.

RockO’s is definitely a family affair. Orr has even inherited some of her mother’s waitresses, whom she herself has worked with for about 20 years. Orr’s children and her sister Donna will also help by waiting tables.

“I’ve been blessed to have them,” Orr said. “Without my kids, grandkids and a half a dozen good friends, it’d never [have come as far as it has].”

Staff Writer Melissa Kruse can be contacted at (425) 888-2311 or by e-mail at melissa.kruse@valleyrecord.com