Share: 

Ribbon-cutting ceremony held for The Lighthouse

Restaurant sits on Rehoboth Bay adjacent to Hyatt Place Dewey Beach
Gathered at The Lighthouse Restaurant ribbon-cutting ceremony are (l-r) Emily Grothey, Rehoboth Beach-Dewey Beach Chamber of Commerce; Dewey Beach Mayor Dale Cooke; State Auditor Kathy McGuiness; Mike Nash; Dewey Business Partnership Executive Director Kelly Ranieri; Dewey Beach Commissioner Bill Stevens; Drew DiFonzo; Michael Kinnard; Carol Everhart, RBDB Chamber president/CEO; Cheryl DiFonzo; Vince DiFonzo; Thom Harvey; Robin Harvey; Jack Redefer; Dewey Beach Town Manager Bill Zolper; Bobbie Redefer; Dewey Beach Commissioner Paul Bauer; Thomas J. Hanna; Sen. Ernie Lopez, R-Lewes; Joe Reinhart; and Meghan McCalley, RBDB Chamber. ELLEN DRISCOLL PHOTOS
Ellen Driscoll
August 4, 2021
TKo Hospitality President Vince DiFonzo introduces Thom Harvey, president of Harvey Hanna & Associates, of which The Lighthouse Cove property is an affiliate development project.
The open-air concept Lighthouse Restaurant overlooks Rehoboth Bay adjacent to Hyatt Place Dewey Beach.
The Lighthouse Restaurant offers indoor and outdoor seating and a wrap-around bayside deck, and features coastal cuisine and a raw bar, handcrafted cocktails and live entertainment.

Local and state officials gathered with representatives of Lighthouse Cove Development Company and TKo Hospitality to hold a long-awaited ribbon-cutting ceremony for The Lighthouse Restaurant in Dewey Beach July 28.

Thom Harvey, president of Harvey Hanna & Associates, of which The Lighthouse Cove property is an affiliate development project, thanked everyone for their work leading up to the event.

“We started this 12 years ago,” Harvey said. “We were building, and we were within six weeks of getting all of it done, and then we had the arsonist come in.”

Harvey said hoped the restaurant would be well accepted.

“I had a friend on Facebook, and I get emotional,” he said, pausing. “It’s [former Mayor] TJ Redefer. Today would have been his birthday.”

Many schedules were juggled in order to have the ribbon-cutting ceremony on what would have been Redefer’s 60th birthday, Harvey said. Redefer passed away in April 2020; on July 28, 2020, the Baywalk surrounding Hyatt Place Dewey Beach was dedicated in honor of Redefer. 

“I think that’s extremely poignant,” Harvey said. “Here we are on the TJ Redefer Memorial Baywalk, and we’re doing this grand opening on his birthday. Literally, my only regret is that he’s not here to share it with us.”

The new, open-air concept restaurant offers sweeping views of Rehoboth Bay sunsets, indoor and outdoor seating, and a wrap-around bayside deck. It features coastal cuisine and a raw bar, handcrafted cocktails and live entertainment.

In March 2019, Lighthouse Cove officials announced the original, 40-year-old Lighthouse Restaurant would be demolished and a new, modern restaurant would be built in its place. Originally projected to open in summer 2020, the restaurant’s opening was delayed a year after an April 2020 arson destroyed it and the adjacent lighthouse structure.

The new Lighthouse Restaurant is among the final phases of the Lighthouse Cove redevelopment project, which also includes the Hyatt Place Dewey Beach hotel, bayside residential condominiums, a conference center and commercial retail space.

The Lighthouse Restaurant is at 124 Dickinson Ave. For more information, go to lighthousedeweybeach.com or call 302-227-4333.

Most Popular

Most Popular