There’s no summer slowdown when it comes to new restaurants. Two popped up recently on Concord Pike, including a 24-hour diner and ramen noodle spot.
Here’s what to expect if you go:
2530 Concord Pike, Wilmington; (302) 407-3937; myconcorddiner.com
A diner opened every day has popped up at the site of the former Touch of Italy.
The Italian restaurant operated at 2530 Concord Pike from 2018 until closing in April 2020 due to the pandemic, according to a post that Touch of Italy founder Bob Cipretti posted on its Facebook page. It never reopened for business.
The building, next to the Charcoal Pit, had operated prior to that for about four years as a Big Fish Restaurant Group restaurant that was known as Bella Coast Italian Kitchen & Market. The sprawling space had 150 seats.
The hours for the restaurant, which opened in June, initially were 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. But the diner now is open 24 hours.
Another 24-hour diner in the area is the Wilmington Diner in Penny Hill, which was once known as the Marsh Road Diner. It’s open continuously six days a week, but on Sundays, it closes at 8 p.m.
The Kirkwood Diner & Restaurant on Kirkwood Highway in the Milltown area initially had planned to be 24 hours, but it’s open daily from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m.
Concord Diner has a large menu that includes a full breakfast with items like steak and eggs ($22.99) served with with home fries and toast; sausage omelets ($10.99); Belgian waffles ($7.99); and scrapple, egg and cheese breakfast sandwiches ($9.99). Lunch and dinner options include panini, wraps like chicken Caesar salad, club sandwiches, cheesesteaks, burgers, meatloaf, roast turkey, beef liver and baked ham.
The diner has multiple private spaces that can be used for parties and events.
While there are several diners on Concord Pike, including Lucky’s Coffee Shop, IHOP and Brandywine Diner, restaurant patrons have been missing the former Hollywood Grill which was close to where Concord Diner is now located.
4015 Concord Pike, Talleyville Town Shoppes; 302-842-2985; yokairamendelaware.com
The short-lived Pho Sun Vietnamese restaurant at the corner of Silverside Road and Concord Pike, which opened in July 2020 and took over the spot of the former Casa Tropical, a fleeting restaurant featuring Latin cuisine, has been replaced by an eatery focusing on ramen.
Yokai Ramen Bistro is a new-to-Delaware operation offering ramen mixed with traditional Japanese ingredients using some new techniques. Broths at the restaurant, which opened in early June, are made from scratch daily. Another location is in Delaware, Ohio.
The Talleyville site, open daily from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m., has appetizers that include steamed buns, fried squid, shrimp shumai, gyoza, scallion pancakes and crab rangoon.
Donburi or a Japanese-style “rice-bowl” has proteins and vegetables simmered together. Flavors included minced pork or a deep-fried Japanese chicken thigh ($13.95 each), along with fried marinated tofu ($11.95) and shrimp tempura ($14.95).
The stars of a meal are steaming bowls of ramen and add-ins including pork belly, roasted black garlic oil, a gooey-yolk egg, fish cakes, corn mushrooms and house-made chili oil.
Contact Patricia Talorico at ptalorico@delawareonline.com and follow her on Twitter @pattytalorico. Sign-up for herDelaware Eats newsletter
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