- Rail Haus is modeled after a German beer garden with about 2,500 square feet inside and nearly 20,000 square feet outside.
- Craft beers will be featured from Delaware and surrounding states along with German-inspired brews.
Donny Legans has a vision for an indoor-outdoor restaurant and bar in downtown Dover that’s a community gathering place like the one that helped spark the revitalization of his former neighborhood in Philadelphia.
The Air Force veteran is planning to open a German-style beer garden at 92 N. West St., called Rail Haus because it’s near the railroad tracks and “haus” is German for “house.”
“We used to live in Fishtown, in Philadelphia, and we had an awesome beer garden right across the street from our home, and it really changed the area,” Legans said.
As its popularity grew, more entrepreneurs and investors were attracted to the neighborhood.
“It became a place where young people and families would hang out. Other restaurants opened, attracting some top chefs. Then there were more coffee shops and concert venues,” he said.
Stories about the revitalization of Fishtown and rising real estate prices were featured in newspapers and magazines including a Forbes article, “How Fishtown, Philadelphia Became America’s Hottest New Neighborhood.”
Though they enjoyed living in Fishtown, Legans’ wife is in the Air Force Reserves and had to drive to Dover Air Force Base periodically. After checking out the Dover area, they decided to relocate.
“We fell in love with the place,” Legans said. “But once we moved here, we thought something was missing – a restaurant like the beer garden in our old neighborhood.”
Before the revitalization in Fishtown, Legans said there were industrial areas with some vacant buildings, similar to the North West Street area in Dover.
“I’ve had this feeling we could bring the same atmosphere to downtown Dover that the beer garden helped create in Fishtown,” he said.
While they’ve never owned a restaurant before, he and his wife have experience investing in real estate and have asked for advice from their friends about running a restaurant.
“We have a partner and some seasoned vets on our team,” he said.
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Attracted by business grants
Legans said the possibility of grants from state, county and city programs influenced his decision to invest in downtown Dover, a block north of West Division Street.
One of the organizations helping him with information on grants is the Downtown Dover Partnership, which promotes downtown events and economic development in an effort to preserve historic properties.
The group’s executive director, Diane Laird, said the beer garden will be “an asset to our downtown and the entire community.”
“We’re thrilled,” said Laird. “This is something that is family oriented with recreational activities as well as dining. It will be a wonderful draw for downtown Dover.”
In addition to applying for a grant through the Downtown Dover Partnership, Legans has applied for funding from Delaware’s Downtown Development District program and the Delaware Division of Small Business EDGE program.
Multi-year process before renovations could begin
To raise the money to renovate and open Rail Haus, Legans and his wife sold some of their properties in Philadelphia.
The plan has taken more than two years, from the time they started looking for buildings, to the purchase and then the city approval process.
They paid $110,000 for the former Southern States building and property which had multiple uses including storage of petroleum products. The building had been vacant for several years.
State environmental testing on the soil was done before the sale after underground fuel tanks were removed. Then after the sale and rezoning, environmental testing was required again.
“Everything is OK,” Legans said.
The project received approval from the city in December, allowing Legans to start renovations. Demolition work began two weeks ago.
“We have to gut the inside, raise and level the foundation and flooring, install a new roof, siding and insulation,” Legans said. “Then we get to the fun stuff, all the new equipment and furnishings and overhead garage doors to make this a true indoor-outdoor venue.”
He estimates the renovations will take about six to seven months. An opening date, if everything goes as scheduled, will be in July or August.
He’s hiring 25 employees to start.
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Plans for an indoor-outdoor restaurant and gathering place
The indoor space at Rail Haus measures about 2,500 square feet with seating for 85.
But the outdoor space is what makes the restaurant a beer garden, with nearly 20,000 square feet for dining, games and hanging out. Along with 40 seats and a bar, the yard will have areas for cornhole and bocce and a play area for kids. Dogs will be allowed outside.
It will be similar to Constitution Yards at the Wilmington Riverfront, except Rail Haus will be open all year. During cooler months, Legans plans to keep the outside open when possible, with heaters and fire pits.
He doesn’t have plans to brew beer. The focus will be on serving craft beers from Delaware and surrounding states along with German-inspired brews.
The restaurant will feature bratwurst – German-style sausages – along with burgers, salads, soups and döners – a German dish similar to Greek gyros. A brunch menu will be available weekends.
Legans is planning to buy meats from Haass’ Family Butcher Shop nearby.
Food trucks will be welcome.
“Our kitchen area is small, but we didn’t want to give up indoor seating space for a larger kitchen,” he said. “So food trucks will help and it’ll be part of the whole community gathering spot idea.”
The location attracted Legans because it had the space needed for a beer garden and it’s near Delaware State University’s downtown campus, state and county government buildings, Bayhealth Hospital, and a short drive from the Air Force base.
“Dover’s population doubles during the day. So many workers come here,” Legans said.
He’s also hoping to appeal to people interested in fitness.
“There’s a bike lane nearby. We’re going to welcome cyclists. There are several fitness centers in the area and we’re hoping people will meet here after their workouts. We’d like to offer yoga classes, too,” he said.
He believes his timing is right.
“I think people are itching to get out and see people and meet people,” Legans said. “The last few years have been rough on everyone, during COVID. I think this is going to be huge hit, and we’ve received a lot of support already. I hope this helps the west side of downtown and generates opportunity here for other entrepreneurs.”
Reporter Ben Mace covers real estate and development stories. Reach him at rmace@gannett.com.
