Diner Dash 4: Hometown Hero

Diner Dash: Hometown Hero is the fourth installment in the Diner Dash series of casual games. It was developed and published by PlayFirst, KatGames and Big Splash Games. it was launched on September 25, 2007.

Story
Flo returns to her hometown to visit her Grandma Florence and spend a vacation with her, they first arrive to the Zoo to visit the animals but discover the zoo to be desolate and void. When Flo & Grandma have lunch at the Safari Café they see how terrible the service is, when a waiter tells them the zoo is lackluster due to the city hall cutting it's funding Flo and Grandma eventually bring life back to the zoo and rejuvenate it.

Flo and Grandma head the Baseball Stadium to watch the big game tonight, but discover that attendance is poor and service is terrible. Flo resolves to restore the baseball stadium to its prime again with Grandma's help of course.

Flo and Grandma Florence head to the Museum to enjoy some history but find the place to be in poor condition. The Janitor is also the Waiter, Cook and Curator. Flo and Grandma once again restore the museum and bring back tourists.

Flo and Grandma celebrate the day by going down to the Amusement Park and enjoy a delicious funnel cake for a nice sunset meal but find the park to be in a terrible condition. When Flo spots an old building called Florence's Groovy Disco with Grandma's help Flo brings life back to the park. Flo then goes on the roller coaster to celebrate the reopening but the coaster pulls Flo back in time...

Flo arrives back in time to find Grandma Florence gone and her disco up and running, when she goes inside she finds Florence now much younger and resolves to help her keep the disco up. When Flo finishes the disco she sheds a tearful goodbye to her younger grandmother and hops back into the roller coaster and booms the present, Flo is saddened by the experience but is greeted by Grandma Florence who is now wearing different clothing. Flo then discovers her efforts altered the present and the disco is still up and running. Flo & Florence head inside and celebrate the disco's anniversary.

Restaurants
Flo visits her hometown and must go around restoring several landmark attractions.

Safari Café at the Zoo
A small eatery at the Zoo, upgrading includes adding in animals, animal-themed furniture and upgrading the zoo. Flo and Grandma visited the zoo so Flo could once again see the animals from her childhood.

Diner at Homerun Park
A small restaurant located above the stadium seats and with a view of the games. The upgrades relate to several baseball themed decorations. As the diner slowly rejuvenates the seats will fill with people. There is also an announcer horn that frequently blows noise into the diner.

Museum Grill
A small restaurant located in a section of Museum, there are several exhibits in the background, a virtual mammoth exhibit will cause noise at the grill annoying many tourists. As the museum becomes better more people will appear in the background.

Beach Shack at the Boardwalk
Located near the beach is a small eatery in a shack, Flo and Grandma serve several people that arrive at the Amusement Park. The decorations are fit to theme that of a carnival. There is also a roller coaster that will cause disturbance to customers until it is fixed. As the park slowly comes back to life more people will come and a new ride is installed.

Florence's Groovy Disco
Located near the Amusement Park, Florence's Disco is the final restaurant of the game and is owned by Grandma Florence when she was in her 30s. Florence was unable to keep the disco afloat and it was closed down and bulldozed into a parking lot. Flo warps to the past and resolves to save the disco with Florence's help. The upgrades are themed to that of 1970s, there is also a large disco ball above the restaurant and several people dancing in the background, there are 2 large speakers that, until fixed, will cause severe noise disturbance. The chef cooking in the background is Cookie, who would eventually come back to serve at Flo's Diner.

Gourmet Edition
Hometown Hero incorporates a special Gourmet Edition, which is only available online. An online-multiplayer versus mode was made available in which you battle a different player to earn the most money, you can also team up with a player instead. There is bonus downloadable content including new restaurants and a style-your-own waiter customization and even making your own restaurant. Your restaurant and waiter can be uploaded to your PlayFirst profile (assuming you have one). Most require a small fee to download.

The 15 restaurants that you can purchase in Gourmet Edition would eventually become their own games: Diner Dash Seasonal Snack Pack, Diner Dash: Flo Through Time, and Diner Dash: Once Upon a Diner.

Customer Types

 * Teenagers - Exactly like the Cellphone Addicts except being teens, they eat and order moderately. There are 2 versions of teenagers, boys & girls, if you seat teen boys next to teen girls they will cease all cell phone disturbance and flirt instead, this also gives you a flirt bonus.
 * Kindly Senior (Female) - Like the kindly seniors of the previous game, the only exception is that they are female and have dark skin. In some levels, they appear with families, making them grandparents.
 * Hungry Men - They eat and order moderately, they will always ask for a second meal and this can complicate your chaining so it is best to seat other moderate customers after they finish their first course.
 * Celebrities - They are impatient and flow through things at a moderate speed, if you seat them next to someone they will starstruck them giving them a mood boost and giving you a point bonus. They tip extremely high so it is a priority to keep their mood at maximum.
 * Food Critic - A major returning customer from the original Diner Dash, they order slowly but eat moderately, they also tip very high so it is a good idea to keep their mood at maximum.

Versus Assistant
At certain levels in each restaurant, Flo must hire an assistant who will take over the current restaurant when she and Grandma Florence depart. In these levels, the only goal is to make more money than her assistant. It incorporates a new element of friendly competition into the game instead of always going against the clock. The assistant level of Florence's Groovy Disco has you going against an assistant with a second helper (to match Flo & Florence).

Secret Levels
Returning to Hometown Hero is secret levels (now labeled Expert Levels) as always they condition of unlocking them is to rank expert on all levels of that restaurant. They are as follows:
 * Safari Café - Sunday Brunch - Kindly Seniors & Teenagers populate this secret level, it is often required to seat the seniors early and the teenagers a little bit later to keep the mood and chaining up since there is no podium.
 * Homerun Park Diner - All Star Game - Everyone in this level is hungry, they will order snacks frequently and dessert if their mood is good enough.
 * Museum Grill - Tourist Invasion - This level is crawling with tourists, which means impatient people with many cameras to snap.
 * Boardwalk Beach Shack - Birthday Bash - This level features mixed families, everyone will request a snack and highchairs will be highlighted frequently.
 * Florence's Groovy Disco - Flo's Inferno - This level is deadly and capable of withering your spirit if you are not careful, everyone is impatient and everyone will order the instant they are sat. You need to be faster than you can ever be to survive.'

Expansion Packs

 * Diner Dash: Flo Through Time
 * Diner Dash: Once Upon a Diner
 * Diner Dash: Seasonal Snack Pack

Trivia

 * A promotional demo flash version (which uses Darla's Café and music from Diner Dash 2: Restaurant Rescue) was released to promote the game.