Arena’s Deli celebrates 20th anniversary

One of Rehoboth Beach’s most popular restaurant destinations is turning 20 this year.

Arena’s Deli, located on 149 Rehoboth Ave., is commemorating the occasion with a revamped menu and additions to the always well-populated outdoor seating area.

Arena’s bills itself as “the place locals hang” and the ownership reflects that. Four of the five owners were long-time employees who banded together to buy the restaurant in 2005. Co-owners Med Davis, Matthew Evans and brothers Andrew and Ramsey Schrader have all been involved with Arena’s for more than a decade. They combined with fifth owner Paul Kuhns to buy the restaurant in September 2005 from former owner Jeff Hamer.

Evans said the Arena’s menu, focused primarily on sandwiches and subs, has not been changed in close to 10 years. But this year, some changes are in order.

“We have fish tacos, shrimp tacos, French dip sandwiches, a couple different seafood things,” Evans said. “I think the best thing about Arena’s is we’re consistent. We don’t change with trends. It’s always the same friendly atmosphere. We have the same staff year-in-and-year-out. Same good food, same good service.”

Ramsey Schrader said the new menu items were cycled through as specials before being permanently put on the menu, as a way to gauge their popularity with customers.

The restaurant will also add two new flat screen TVs to its outdoor deck.

Arena’s has always strived to create a friendly, casual atmosphere.

“Making the customer feel like a guest, not feeling like they’re a customer,” Evans said.

Schrader said, “When I came in it was almost five years ago, Andrew and I had been coming here for 10 or 12 years before that. I still say if we didn’t own it, I’d be in here as much as I was before. It’s important for us to keep that going.”

The success of Arena’s Rehoboth Avenue location has allowed the owners to open two more Arena’s locations: one at the Villages of Five Points in Lewes and another next to Big Fish Grill on Route 1. The two newer locations have more of a coffee shop vibe, although they do serve the same menu as the Rehoboth Avenue restaurant.
“It’s a quieter version of Arena’s. It’s a little bit more low-key,”

Ramsey Schrader said of the Five Points location.

“They have a very specific niche,” Davis added.

Besides the food, Arena’s is also well known for its huge beer selection. The chalkboard over the bar shows the wide array of beers, everything from Budweiser to Warsteiner, Dogfish Head to National Bohemian.

Andrew Schrader said, “There’s always been a big beer selection. We had a general manager, Chris Bisaha, that came in here and he really got full into the beer selection. He really took it upon himself to get as many different beers as humanly possible. That’s something that our manager who does our ordering now does a really good job of. Seeking out the beers you don’t find in every other bar in the area. That’s something we hope to expand in the near future at our highway location.”

“It’s always been part of the Arena’s vibe,” Evans said. “It’s part of what we do and I think it’s a neat thing we do.”

“Our business is geared mainly based on food. Something you see a lot more in the summertime when people come in and get to try different beers they’ve never had before while they have their lunch,” Schrader said.

Ramsey Schrader added, “You can’t beat a good beer and a good sandwich.”

Arena’s is constantly rotating its beer menu and there are always good beers available on specials. Evans said one of the newer things with the beer menu is having more cans available.

“A lot of people are canning and a lot of good beers are being canned,” he said.

He said Arena’s is also looking to carry more local microbrews, such as Evolution brewed in Delmar.

Keeping with its “taking care of the locals” theme, Arena’s is offering 10 percent discount cards to regular customers.

“It’s a nice thing that we’ve rolled out this year to say thanks to our customers,” Evans said.

The local-friendly theme extends to the owners themselves. The Schrader brothers grew up in the area and Davis grew up in Kent County. Although Evans grew up in Pennsylvania, Andrew Schrader said, “We don’t hold that against him.”

Evans said in the future, Arena’s is looking to expand its catering services and he also hopes to open more locations down the road. “We’re proud of what we do,” Evans said.