the Parker House in 1946 and also held his bachelor party in the hotel's Press Room there in 1953. Then Senator Kennedy also proposed to his future wife, Jackie Bouvier, at Table 40 in Parker's Restaurant located inside the Hotel. The hotel was bought by Dunfey Hotels in 1968. Inspired by the nineteenth-century Saturday Club, the Dunfeys founded the New England Circle in 1974, purposeful gatherings of activists from a variety of backgrounds and experiences designed to advance civil and civic dialogue and inspire constructive community change. In 1983, Dunfey Hotels bought Omni Hotels and reorganized itself, with the Dunfey name phased out and the Parker House placed in the Omni division. In 1996, the Omni Hotels chain and its properties, including the Parker House, were sold to TRT Holdings, owned by Texas billionaire Robert Rowling. 21st century The hotel currently has 551 rooms and suites. In 2009, AAA named the hotel one of the top 10 historic U.S. hotels. The Omni Parker House is a member of the National Trust for Historic Preservation's Historic Hotels of America program. Although the hotel was temporarily unable to receive guests as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, the hotel continues to be the longest continuously operating hotel in the US because staff continued to maintain the property and respond to guest inquiries for future reservations during this period. Additionally, the property continued to market its original Boston Cream Pie. Parker's Restaurant Parker's Restaurant predates the historic Parker House Hotel by 22 years. Harvey D. Parker, a coachman for a Watertown woman, frequently dined in a cellar cafe owned by John E. Hunt whenever he visited Boston. In 1832, Parker purchased the cafe from Hunt for $432 and renamed it Parker's Restaurant. The restaurant quickly became famous for its food and excellent service and gained popularity with businessmen, lawyers, and newspapermen. In 1847, Parker took on a business partner, John F. Mills. By 1854, the two purchased a former Mansion, built by merchant John Mico, which would be renovated into the luxury hotel. Culinary Accomplishments The restaurant is famous for the invention of multiple iconic foods. The Boston cream pie and Parker rolls were first created in the Parker House Restaurant kitchen. In 1856, Parker hired the gourmet French chef M. Sanzian to run Parker's restaurant for an annual salary of $5,000. Sanzian's salary was astonishingly high for the time considering