Hamburger Mary’s weighs Old Town Kissimmee as it prepares to reopen after leaving downtown Orlando

A well-known entertainment restaurant looks beyond Orlando’s core

Hamburger Mary’s, the long-running restaurant and live-entertainment venue identified with drag brunches and themed shows, is preparing a Central Florida comeback after closing its downtown Orlando operation in 2024. The company’s next Florida move has centered on Kissimmee, where management has discussed opening a new venue and has publicly highlighted the need for a site that supports both dining and performance.

The discussion has increasingly pointed toward Kissimmee’s Old Town area, a tourism-oriented district anchored by weekend foot traffic and event programming. While no final address in Old Town has been confirmed publicly, the district’s concentration of visitors, parking capacity, and proximity to resort corridors has made it a logical contender for an entertainment-forward concept that relies on both planned ticketed events and casual dining.

Why Kissimmee, and why Old Town is in the conversation

Hamburger Mary’s previously operated for years on West Church Street, a location that benefited from downtown nightlife patterns but also depended heavily on evening walk-in traffic. Public statements tied the decision to leave downtown to reduced pedestrian volumes and changing activity levels after traditional business hours.

Old Town’s appeal is structural: it is designed around a pedestrian loop, frequent special events, and a visitor mix that includes tourists staying on U.S. 192 as well as Central Florida residents seeking nightlife outside downtown Orlando. For a venue built around stage programming, districts that can absorb spikes in weekend demand—and where parking and neighboring uses do not limit nighttime operations—often become strategic options.

A larger venue concept has been described

In outlining plans for a Kissimmee reopening, Hamburger Mary’s has described a buildout centered on a theater-style space, on-site parking, and a property configuration supportive of destination entertainment. That profile aligns with entertainment corridors along U.S. 192 and with nodes such as Old Town, where visitors already expect scheduled shows and bundled experiences.

Any relocation, however, carries operational questions that typically shape a final decision: permitting and buildout timelines, neighbor compatibility, security planning for late-night crowds, and staffing needs for combined restaurant-and-show service. Those factors can shift the opening schedule even after a target area is chosen.

Legal backdrop remains part of the story

The brand’s Central Florida identity has also been influenced by its role in litigation over Florida’s regulation of “adult live performances,” an issue that directly intersects with venues presenting drag shows. The company has maintained that it intends to continue the same entertainment model and age-related policies it previously used, a position that keeps its reopening plans connected to the broader legal environment for live performance programming in the state.

• Hamburger Mary’s closed its downtown Orlando location in 2024 after years of operation.
• Reopening plans have focused on Kissimmee, with Old Town frequently cited as a possible fit.
• The next venue concept has been described as theater-forward, suggesting a destination model rather than a standard restaurant relaunch.

Hamburger Mary’s has indicated it intends to resume operations with the same drag-centric entertainment approach used in Orlando, positioning the reopening as both a business relaunch and a test of the state’s evolving performance rules.