Dine in Downtown Wilmington - Restaurants are ready to serve you!

Behind the bar at Makers Alley - Moonloop Photography

As Delaware eases restrictions and begins to reopen restaurants across the state, we’ve compiled a list of Downtown Wilmington eateries that are ready to serve you. Whether you’re dining inside or out in the fresh air, reservations are required at most restaurants so be sure to call ahead. Also, masks should be worn when entering the restaurant but may be removed when you are seated so you can enjoy your meal.

• Stitch House Brewery | 302-250-4280 | Open Mon-Sat 11am to 8pm

• Tonic Steak & Seafood | 302-777-2040 | Open Mon-Wed 11:30am to 10pm, Thurs-Fri 11:30am to 11pm, Sat 3:00pm to 11pm

• Chelsea Tavern | 302-482-3333 | Open Mon-Fri 11:30am to 1am, Sat-Sun 10am to 1am

• Cafe Mezzanotte | 302-658-7050 | Open Mon-Fri 11am to 10pm, Sat 1pm to 10pm

• Makers Alley | 302-482-1299 | Open Tues-Sat 3pm to close *

• IM Coffee | 302-300-4935 | Open Mon-Fri 7am to 4pm

• Mikimoto’s | 302-656-8638 | Open Weds-Fri 4-9pm, Sat-Sun 2-9pm

• Washington St Ale House | 302-658-2537 | Open Tues-Sat 4-10pm

• Torbert St Social | 302-407-6627 | Open Fri-Sat 4 to 11pm

• Dorcea | 302-691-7447 | Open Tues & Sat 4-8pm, Weds-Fri 11:30am to 8pm

• Jimmy Johns | 302-777-1300 | Open Mon-Fri 11am to 3pm *

• Bardea | 302-426-2069 | Open Mon-Weds 11:30am to 2:30pm & 5 to 9pm, Thurs-Sat 11:30am to 2:30pm & 5 to 10pm

• La Fia | 302-543-5574 | Open Mon-Thurs 11am- 2pm & 5-9pm, Fri 11am- 2pm & 5-9:30pm, Sat 5-9:30pm

• Farmer & The Cow | 302-407-5957 | Open Tues-Sat 12 to 7pm

• Eat Clean | 302-476-8928 | Open Mon-Fri 7am to 2pm *

• Tasties 302 | 302-482-2584 | Open Mon-Thurs 11am to 10pm, Fri-Sat 11am to 11pm, Sun 11am to 9pm *

• Brew HaHa (Del. Ave. Location) | 302-777-5137 | Open Mon-Fri 8am to 1pm *

• Cavanaugh’s | 302-656-4067 | Open Mon-Fri 11am to 7:30pm

• Green Box Kitchen | 302-274-2195 | Open Weds-Fri from 12 to 5pm *

*No reservation required.

If you are looking for additional ways to support these restaurants and help them bounce back from COVID-19 and other recent events, please consider donating to the Wilmington Strong Fund, which offers grants to small businesses within the City of Wilmington to ensure they remain open for business.

Support Downtown Wilmington Businesses And Win $25!

Support Downtown Wilmington DE small businesses through our social media contest! Share a recent purchase from a Downtown Wilmington business on social media for a chance to win a $25 gift card to one of our local small businesses.

1. Use #ILoveDowntownWilmDE
2. Tag the business you supported
3. Tag @downtownwilmde

We will pick a lucky winner each week to receive the gift card!

Downtown Wilmington DE Restaurants Open for Takeout!!!

Updated: May 11, 2020

With the recent limitations placed on Delaware restaurants, taverns, and bars by local government, we decided to compile a list of Downtown Wilmington DE restaurants open to make life a little easier for everyone. Delawareans should continue to support these businesses, and their workers, by ordering takeout and delivery during these uncertain times. Please be mindful, if you are able to order directly from the business and pick-up from them

*We understand the convenience of mobile delivery services during this time. However, restaurants are required to pay fees, which can create additional costs for the restaurants and consumers. Every restaurant appreciates your support, however if you are able to leave your house and get outside, curbside pickup is available. Also, parking is currently not an issue Downtown as metered parking is suspended.

As always, remember to support our small businesses and #shopsmall all year long. Your patronage is greatly appreciated.

Bardea 302-426-2069 – Order online (https://bit.ly/3cokPPM) for curbside pickup, family meals, wine & cocktail pairings from Tuesday- Saturday from 3:30pm-7:30pm.

Brew Haha 302-777-5137 – 222 Delaware Ave. location open for to-go, curbside pickup, delivery and online ordering from 8am to 1pm Monday-Friday.

Cafe Mezzanotte 302-658-7050 – Takeout (GrubHub) or call to order. Gift Card Special: Purchase a Gift Card of $50 or more and add an additional 20% to the amount, on us! 

Cavanuagh’s 302-656-4067 - Takeout (http://yac.bz/qH2L) and local walking delivery. Open Monday-Friday from 11am to 7:30pm.

Chelsea Tavern 302-482-3333 – Takeout and delivery (Grubhub) only. Open seven days a week from 12pm to 10pm. Gift Card Special: Buy one Gift Card for $50, Get a $25 Card FREE!

The Chicken Spot 302-358-2381 – Takeout and delivery (Doordash) from Tuesday-Friday 8am-5pm.

DECO – Closed until further notice.

DiMeo’s Pizza 302-655-1427 – Takeout and delivery. Order online through their website or Facebook. Monday-Friday 10am-9pm, Saturday 4pm-8pm.

Dorcea 302-691-7447 – Takeout (Toast app) and curbside pickup. Tuesday and Saturday 4pm-8pm and Wednesday-Friday from 11:30am-8pm.

Dunkin 302-481-6225 – Takeout and delivery (Grubhub). Open seven days a week, 5am-7pm.

Eat Clean – Takeout, curbside pickup and delivery (Doordash with a minimum $20 order). Open Monday-Friday 7am-2pm.

El Diablo on Market Street (302) 561-0569 – Call ahead service and curbside pickup is available Tuesday - Saturday from 12pm - 6pm.

Faire Market & Cafe 302-250-4280 – Closed until further notice. Deli products are currently being sold at Farmer & The Cow.

Farmer & the Cow 302-407-5957 – Curbside, takeout, order online and local delivery. Open Tuesday-Saturday 12pm-7pm.

Green Box Kitchen – Closed until further notice.

Hotel Du Pont – Closed until further notice.

Jimmy Johns 302-777-1300 – Takeout, delivery and order online or over the phone. Open Monday-Friday 10am-3pm. Christina Care and Nemours Hospital employees receive a 30% off discount for non-delivery orders.

La Fia – Closed until further notice. Serving takeout at Crow Bar in Trolley Square.

LOMA Coffee – Closed until further notice.

Makers Alley 302-0482-1299 – Takeout (UberEats or Grubhub) and order online. Open Tuesday-Saturday 4pm-8pm (closed Sunday/Monday). Get 25% off when you using the code COVID25.

Mikimotos 302-656-8638 – Takeout only thru ChowNow (sushi only). Open Monday-Friday 11:30am-7pm, Saturday & Sunday 2pm-7pm.

Mimi Teriyaki – Closed until further notice.

Olympic Subs – Takeout and delivery only. Open 9am-5pm Monday-Saturday. *hours may vary

Starbucks – Closed until further notice.

Sterling Grille – Closed until further notice.

Stitch House Brewery 302-250-4280 – Curbside, takeout, order online and delivery (Grubhub) from all three restaurants (Locale Post, Faire Market, and Stitch House Brewery) available at Stitch House. The limited menu can be viewed on their Facebook page includes family and kid-friendly options and crowlers of beers!

Terra Café – Closed until further notice.

Tonic Bar & Grille 302-777-2040 – Takeout and delivery (Uber Eats & Doordash). Open Monday-Friday 11:30am-7pm, Saturday 3pm-7pm. Gift Card Special: For every $100 purchase, you will receive an extra $25 gift card.

UDairy Creamery – Closed until further notice.

Washington Street Ale House 302-658-2537 – Takeout thru ChowNow. Open Tuesday-Sunday 11:30am-7pm.

Chelsea Tavern Turns 10!

Please join us in wishing Chelsea Tavern a happy birthday on Saturday, March 14th, as the restaurant celebrates its 10th year on Market Street!

Head to Chelsea Tavern for its 10th-anniversary celebration on Saturday, March 14th! The festivities will include live entertainment, $10 food specials, $5 drink specials, and so much more. Past employees are even invited to take advantage of their employee discount for a final time.

Over the past 10 years, Chelsea Tavern has been the literal and figurative heart of Market Street for residents and visitors alike. Whether its been a bite to eat before a show at The Grand Opera House, a late night drink at the bar, or a savory Sunday brunch, Chelsea Tavern has continued to satisfy hungry restaurant-goers with its extensive beer menu and interpretive comfort food. As a 3-time winner of the Delaware Burger Battle, diners have come to expect delicious burgers paired with perfection to one of the 31 beers on tap at Chelsea until the wee hours of the morning.

At the beginning of the year, Chelsea Tavern also announced an enhanced event calendar in honor of the anniversary - and the restaurant stayed true to its promise. The upcoming calendar is jampacked with events, such as: 

• Brewery of the Month Pairing Dinners – Next up Dogfish Head on Thursday, March 26th

• March Draftness - Discount draft beers during all Men’s NCAA basketball games.

• Monthly Cigar Dinners – May through September, 2020

• Cinco de Mayo Block Party - Date TBD

• Downtown Brew Fest – Saturday, August 9th, 2020

• Weekly Geeks Who Drink Trivia & Flight Club on Tuesday Nights

In addition to ramping up the events calendar, Chelsea Tavern underwent a number of renovations this past year to prepare for the momentous occasion. The new and improved Chelsea Tavern features updated flooring, wall coverings, and lighting within the dining room. The bar also got a refresh with a new bar top equipped with USB outlets for smartphones. Additionally, overlooking the new outdoor plaza next door is the best covered outdoor seating area downtown, with new patio furniture and upgraded landscaping.

See the renovations for yourself and stop in to wish Chelsea Tavern a happy anniversary this month!

Downtown Wilmington, DE Restaurants Featured in Food & Wine Magazine

Congratulations to Downtown Wilmington, DE restaurants Bardea Food & Drink, DECO Wilmington, Torbert Street Social, and the soon to be Le Cavalier at the Green Room who were recognized by Food and Wine magazine for their influence on Wilmington's Restaurant Renaissance!

Wilmington, Delaware’s Restaurant Scene Deserves Your Attention

By: Regan Stephens

In just a few days, Tyler Akin will know what the floors look like. The drab, worn rugs inside the 2,500-square-foot dining room will be ripped up, where the terrazzo underneath may or may not be ruined from a previous renovation. Akin, the chef and owner of Philadelphia’s Stock and Res Ipsa, is working on his biggest project to date, about 30 miles south.

The 36-year-old Delaware native is reimagining the Green Room in Wilmington’s historic Hotel Du Pont, which has, until now, remained largely unchanged for the last hundred-or-so years. The new restaurant, named Le Cavalier, is expected to open this spring, joining a host of new restaurants making Delaware’s biggest city a supremely compelling place to eat.

The Hotel Du Pont first opened in 1913 inside the DuPont building, which occupies an entire city block in downtown Wilmington. Inspired by the opulent hotels populating European cities at the time, the 217-room property has hosted dozens of luminaries over the years, including Amelia Earhart, Katherine Hepburn, and Eleanor Roosevelt. In 2017, the building was bought by local real estate developer the Buccini/Pollin Group, which, along with PM Hotel Group and Akin, have set about giving the Green Room a contemporary upgrade.

“There aren’t many examples quite like the Green Room,” says Akin, who grew up visiting it. “It hits you in the face—you’re walking through history.”

The Green Room revamp is coming in the midst of a restaurant renaissance that’s helping to revitalize the city of Wilmington at large. In the fall of 2018, modern Italian bistro Bardea opened, and within the year it was a James Beard Award semi-finalist for best new restaurant—a first for Wilmington.

Co-owner Scott Stein says he and partner Antimo DiMeo started thinking about opening a restaurant in the city about five years ago. “It still had some growing and developing to do, so we were patient and waited a few years before going for it,” he says. “When we found the space that is now Bardea, we knew it was a fit and we were eager to become a part of this amazing city.”

Just last fall, a local restaurant group opened the speakeasy-style cocktail bar Torbert Street Social in a historic brick building that was once a horse stable, tucked behind a string of restaurants in the city’s Financial District. Also housed in the DuPont building, Deco—short for Delaware Collective, and a nod to the area’s Art Deco architecture—is a new food hall with eight restaurant stalls, a bar, and a private event space. Seven stalls in the $3.5 million project are constant, and range from pastries and banh mi to a pizza-focused outpost of Bardea, while one stall is revolving, allowing local chefs to test concepts before committing to a brick and mortar. While food halls have been opening in cities across the country over the last few years, this is Wilmington’s first, and it's a big deal.

As places like Deco and Bardea were propelling Wilmington’s food scene forward—with dishes like Deco’s banh mi with barbecue pork and housemade veggie chips, and Bardea's hamachi collar aged in foie gras—the Green Room remained stagnant, serving standards like shrimp cocktail and surf and turf…

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