Eggcellent owners expanding with second location
Weeks away from opening a second location, Eggcellent co-owner Elina Kamalova said she and husband Ibo Sen’s approach to their restaurant is simple.
“Give our customers a good breakfast, which makes them happy, and then they’re all set for the day,” said Kamalova, smiling.
Kamalova and Sen opened their first restaurant in downtown Lewes in June 2020. Almost exactly three years later, they’ve announced a second location will be opening soon. This one is outside Rehoboth Beach on the southbound side of Route 1 in the same center as Outlet Liquors and Touch of Italy. Kamalova said they weren’t necessarily looking to expand, but once the space was brought to their attention, they knew they had to move on it.
“That’s the place,” said Kamalova, on their reaction. “It’s a great location.”
Kamalova said they love the feel of downtown Lewes and the customers are great, but there are advantages to the new location – more dining space, more kitchen space and more parking.
Sen, who works in the kitchen, said he’s excited about the opportunities at the new space. There are two walk-ins, two stovetops and a full-size freezer, he said.
Kamalova said they got into the breakfast and lunch business after doing their research and finding the number of restaurants serving dinner far outnumbers breakfast places, especially out on the highway. Most breakfast places are downtown, she said.
“There aren’t too many places for people driving on the highway to stop, get a good breakfast and then go on about their day,” she said.
The space has been a couple of different restaurants over the years – Fork & Flask, Nage before that – so the bones of the building are in good shape, which means there isn’t too much renovation work that needs to be done, said Kamalova. It’s been painted to match the Lewes color scheme, additional lighting was added and the ceiling was brightened up, she said.
“We weren’t going to open as is, because we didn’t want to have the same vibe that was here before,” said Kamalova. “This is a breakfast place, so we wanted things to be bright.”
To begin, the menu at the Rehoboth location will feature the same items as the Lewes location, Sen said. However, he said, the size of the kitchen will allow them to expand the menu as needed.
The couple opened their Lewes location at the height of the pandemic. Kamalova said at the time she never would have thought they would be opening a second location. It was tough and everything took forever, she said.
“It was such a challenge just to get all the stuff we needed, but I knew we had to try it or I never would have forgiven myself,” said Kamalova, adding they aren’t closing their Lewes location. “That’s our baby.”
At this point, Kamalova and Sen aren’t 100% positive when the restaurant will open, but it’s close. They’re finishing up final inspections and some other small details, said Sen.
For more information on Eggcellent, 19730 Coastal Hwy., go to eggcellentinlewes.com or email eggcellentinlewes@gmail.com. The phone number for the Lewes location is 302-200-9528. The phone number for the Rehoboth location is 302-727-5163.
Chris Flood has been working for the Cape Gazette since early 2014. He currently covers Rehoboth Beach and Henlopen Acres, but has also covered Dewey Beach and the state government. He covers environmental stories, business stories and random stories on subjects he finds interesting, and he also writes a column called Choppin’ Wood that runs every other week. Additionally, Flood moonlights as the company’s circulation manager, which primarily means fixing boxes that are jammed with coins during daylight hours, but sometimes means delivering papers in the middle of the night. He’s a graduate of the University of Maine and the Landing School of Boat Building & Design.
