Delaware

Goober’s Diner, Wilmington, DE., 4/6/24

~ hsnixon ~ 4 Comments
exterior – 1203 N Lincoln St, Wilmington, DE 19806

Goober’s Diner was a classic retro stainless steel diner on 2 levels that seats 80 people.  It arrived on flatbed trucks from Atlanta after being assembled there and then broken apart for shipping.  The construction took about 2 years and it opened in late 2020.  It was put in place next to Goober’s Garage where owner Vance Kershner keeps his car collection.  Co-owner Tom Hannum has many years of restaurant experience so you can stop in for a meal and then roam around a huge collection of classic cars.   They created some outdoor seating in the parking lot in front of both so parking is as you can find it on the street.  Inside you’ll find stools at a counter, red booths, some free-standing tables and lots of red tiles and light fixtures.  They have an elevator as well as stairs to the second floor so I also snapped a photo up there.  Lots of stainless steel and the curved ceiling give it an old diner feel.  Two bakery cases were at the entry as this diner has a pastry chef.  Open daily, they serve all-day breakfast as well as lunch and dinner (Wed-Sat) but only after 11:00 am.  The food was fine and the service was fast but I think I liked roaming through the cars as much as breakfast. Continue reading →

Bardea Food & Drink, Wilmington, DE., 4/5/24

~ hsnixon ~ Leave a comment
exterior – 620 N Market St, Wilmington, DE 19801

Bardea Food and Drink was opened over 5 years ago by Scott Stein and Chef Antimo DiMeo in the historic section of downtown.   It has an Italian base but the menu is all over the place.  The large place was not to be confused with the Bardea Steak next door or the new concept across the street, but they all are under the same ownership.  Chef DiMeo was a semifinalist for the Best Chef Mid-Atlantic James Beard Award in 2019 and featured on the Today Show and Vogue magazine.  The large place was hopping on Friday night but died out by 8:30.  You enter into a large bar area where people were also eating.  The main dining room next to it had tightly packed tables, so tight that we had to wait for another table as the first one had chairs that couldn’t move away from the table to allow seating due to crowded conditions.  The 2-tops seemed to ring around the edge of the room with 4-tops in the middle.  Music was in the background but the crowd already provided plenty of background noise.  An open kitchen was opposite the wall of windows looking out onto the street.  Fun art was on the walls and there was some wonderful little tilework on the floors.  Service was friendly but very slow with long periods of absence – possibly too many people and too few workers – that made it less than a wonderful evening.  Some of the food was good while others plates stayed in the average range.  The timing was so slow that we were happy to skip dessert just to get out of the place.  It was popular but I would avoid it on a weekend night. Continue reading →

Kozy Korner, Wilmington, DE., 4/5/24

~ hsnixon ~ 4 Comments

 

exterior – 906 N Union St, Wilmington, DE 19805

Kozy Korner was opened in 1922 by John Vouras who passed it on to his son Nicholas in 1964.  He ran the business for 20 more years and then the building it was in was torn down to make way for a high-rise hotel.  In 1992 Nicholas restarted the business with his son John in a new location where it is today.  The restaurant has won the “Best Breakfast in Delaware” hosted by Delaware Today Media at least 6 times and been recognized by the Food Network as the top Delaware Diner.  On their 100th anniversary, they were featured on the Cosmos Philly News.  It’s a small place with booths and small round tables.  As you enter the cooking area was on your right and a bench for waiting was on the left.  Large pink and green linoleum tiles were on the floor and the dividers between the booths seemed to be leftovers from the Covid pandemic.   The menu includes breakfast and lunch items and was cash only.  Service was friendly and efficient and the food was tasty.  Another piece of history you shouldn’t miss in this area that abounds with historic offerings. Continue reading →

La Fia Bistro, Wilmington, DE., 4/4/24

~ hsnixon ~ 2 Comments
exterior – 421 N Market St, Wilmington, DE 19801

La Fia was in the historic area of downtown in a corner building.  Owned by Bryan and Andrea Sikora, it opened in 2013 with Bryan as chef.  You enter into the area that has some goods for sale and you can look into the long kitchen.  The main dining room seats around 35  people with closely set small bare wood tables.  From the high tin ceiling hang ducts and a variety of light fixtures.  Windows to the street are on 2 sides of the room and music was in the background.  A few higher seats face the bar and the front windows and there was a second smaller dining room.  The current Executive Chef Dwain Kalup, focused on local and sustainable ingredients with a seasonally based menu.  On Wed. night they have a 3-course $40 menu with some optional supplements.  As we were there on Thurs. we made our own tasting menu.  There were no specials offered, as supplements to the menu.  It was only a minute’s walk from our hotel but it would be worth driving to as the food was quite good. Continue reading →

Angelo’s Luncheonette, Wilmington, DE., 4/4/24

~ hsnixon ~ 4 Comments
exterior – 1722 N Scott St, Wilmington, DE 19806

Angelo’s Luncheonette was started by the Muzzi family in 1967.  August Muzzi, who started there at age  17 still works the grill at the old-school luncheonette that is in a 1894 building.  He doesn’t like change and not much has changed at this cute cozy place.   His son, daugther and son-in-law all work in the place named for August’s father Angelo.  The Biden family are regular patrons and an election poster from his days in the Senate hangs next to a letter to Muzzi from Biden.  Someone in the family was a huge Elvis fan as there are a ton of memorabilia and photos decorating the place.  The small place had counter stools in front of the cooking and prep areas and a few small booths on the opposite wall.  They serve only breakfast and lunch and are cash only (they do have a debit machine on-site).  The staff were all very friendly and helpful and the food was quite good.  It’s a funky one-of-a-kind place that I hope all will get to visit while it’s still in business. Continue reading →

Snuff Mill Restaurant, Butchery & Wine Bar, Wilmington, 4/3/24

~ hsnixon ~ Leave a comment
exterior – 1601 Concord Pike Suite 77-79, Wilmington, DE 19803

Snuff Mill Restaurant, opened in July 2021, was a small place tucked into a large U-shaped shopping center.  They advertised themselves as “farm-to-table” and they did reference where each of the meats were locally sourced.  Butchering was done on-site and a counter at the entrance did have items for sale.   Many other ingredients are also locally sourced.  The small tables were closely packed and had paper on top of the cloth.  Along one wall were raised tables with bench seating and there were about 4 seats at the counter in front of the bar where people also ate.  Even on a Wed. night they were doing a brisk business and when you make the reservation you are told you have the table for no more than 2 hours.   Faint music was in the background and art was on the walls.  Service was good, friendly and fairly quick.  There were a number of specials in addition to the menu.  We had a wonderful meal and I would easily recommend going there but check their website to see who becomes the next driving culinary voice.  Chef/partner Robert Lhulier parted with co-owner Bill Irvin and left the place the day after we were there. Continue reading →

Charcoal Pit, Wilmington, DE., 4/3/24

~ hsnixon ~ 9 Comments
exterior – 2600 Concord Pike, Wilmington, DE 19803

Charcoal Pit has been serving burgers and ice cream creations since 1956.  It has long been a favorite of President Joe Biden, according to Food and Wine magazine and was listed in a Road Food book by Michael Stern as a place to find mid-century Americana.  Opening with just 4 tables it was so successful the founder had to expand to a space with room for 115 customers.  Now there is also a second location but we went to the original “Big Pit” which was being re-modeled inside.  According to our server, the remodeling has been going on for some time but they have not shut down one day for it. Booths are small and slightly larger varieties and hug the walls while tables fill in the rest.  On one end were openings into the kitchen and on one side of it was the round to-go waiting area.  Another portion of the interior was the ice cream counter which looked to usually have seating but today the counter was being resurfaced.  Large squares of linoleum are on the floor and the booth seats are bright red.  Small individual jukeboxes are at each table with free choices but all choices are added to the queue played on the overhead speakers.  The menu offered lots of choices and specials for seniors which seemed very popular.  Our server didn’t flinch at any customizations of the burger order. Continue reading →