After years of serving the Westminster community, Johanssons Dining House, the longtime English-style tavern and brewpub at 4 W. Main St., announced Wednesday that it will change ownership sometime this summer.
Johanssons shared the news in a letter posted to Facebook, thanking the community for decades of loyalty.
The full letter reads:
To Our Valued Customers, After many wonderful years serving this community, our family restaurant is preparing to change hands of ownership sometime this summer.
While this decision has not been an easy one, we wanted to share this news with our loyal customers in advance and sincerely thank you for the support, kindness, and memories you have given us throughout the years.
As we begin this transition, we kindly ask anyone who may still have outstanding gift cards to please visit us and redeem them in the coming weeks.
More details regarding our final day of business will be shared as plans are finalized.
Thank you for allowing us to be part of your lives, celebrations, traditions, and memories over the years. It has truly meant the world to us.
We look forward to seeing and serving you at our sister restaurant O'Lordans.
With heartfelt appreciation,
The Johansson Family & Staff
A Westminster Main Street Institution
Johanssons Dining House has been a fixture of downtown Westminster since 1994, when David Johansson purchased the property and converted the venue, Champs, into the dining house it is today.
The Man Behind Johanssons
As Carroll News profiled in 2019, David Johansson grew up on a farm in Freeland and learned his work ethic from his father, Birger Johansson, a builder, ironworker, and professional chef who arrived in the United States from Sweden virtually penniless.
Family Will Still Own O'Lordans, Just Down the Street
In 2005, the Johanssons opened O'Lordans Irish Pub at 14 Liberty St, which remains open and owned by the family. That building has a history stretching back to the 1860s, having housed a foundry, a barber shop, a teen center, a practice hall for the Westminster Municipal Band, and the Stone House Restaurant, among others.