At last, Delaware's fourth Outback Steakhouse announces an opening date

CLARIFICATION: Previous versions of this story included a photo caption referencing an Outback Steakhouse coming to Dover. That was in 2016.

Blame the sign if you want. Or lay it on a love of Bloomin' Onion.

But the Outback Steakhouse in Middletown has become one of the most anticipated restaurant openings in Delaware.

The Florida-based, Australia-themed steakhouse chain, best known for its grill-seared steaks and trademark Bloomin' Onion appetizer, has been on the menu at 503 Merrimac Ave. for at least a year. That's when Dover-based Axia Hotel Group put up a sign that the steakhouse would arrive to co-anchor a brand-new commercial center called Merrimac Gateway, alongside a Chili's and a Home2 Suites Hotel.

After the Chili's opened in late March , speculation only intensified: When would the Outback open?

Facebook groups devoted to restaurants and new businesses bristled at the regularity of the question. On Google, some would-be customers gave the Middletown Outback bad reviews for not being open yet.

"I was so excited to try the bloomin onion," wrote one eager customer turned away at the gates. "There's one problem though. How am I supposed to try a food item at a restaurant that won't even serve food??? The building is clearly built and ready yet they refuse to let customers in."

Well, we are pleased to announce that Outback will soon let in Middletown customers. Onions will bloom, and steaks will sear to order. "Grilled shrimp on the barbie" will join "Kookaburra wings" and "Toowoomba salmon" — which is to say, spicy wings and salmon with shrimp in Creole sauce.

The projected opening date for the Middletown Outback will be July 30, according to a company spokesperson. Plan accordingly.

The Middletown location will be the fourth in Delaware, alongside the locations in Rehoboth Beach, Dover and the Newark area.

Outback Steakhouse opens July 30 at 503 Merrimac Ave., 302-696-2762, outback.com

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This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: At last, Delaware's fourth Outback Steakhouse announces an opening date