The new kid on the block seems to be having no trouble fitting in.
After a busy opening month of August, the manager of Kildare's on Main said he expected September to have a steep boost in sales with the welcomed return of students.
Brian Houck, general manager, said the opening weeks did not disappoint.
"We had a stellar month in August, but we're on track to do at least the amount of business we did then, if not more," Houck said.
Senior Mallory Schwartz said she recommends Kildare's to her friends.
"The dance floor is very big, the bands are great and the DJs are great,"Schwartz said.
Amy Burkett, 22, of Maryland, who visits her friends from the university, said she enjoys Kildare's atmosphere.
"It's better than all the other bars," she said. "I keep coming back with my friends from Delaware."
These repeat customers will be heavily targeted by Kildare's now that the bulk of the restaurant's clientele has arrived, Houck said.
"The location on Main Street was carefully planned out by our company, which is in the middle of a rapid expansion, springing up on many college campuses around the country," he said.
The young-adult age, synonymous with a college campus, is Kildare's prime demographic, Houck said.
"This is where our company thrives," he said. "This is our target."
Kelly Murphy, a restaurant employee, said she has been busy since students have been back.
"Thursday through Saturday we had a line wrapping all the way around the steps," she said, referring to the steps leading up to the second-floor establishment above Grotto Pizza. "The first few weekends with kids back, it has been slammed."
After struggling to get the kitchen up and running as quickly as the bar, lunch and dinner business has picked up steadily as the kitchen has been completed, Houck said.
"Lunch is finally picking up now that the kitchen is open," he said.
With celebrity chef Brian Duffy, who was featured on NBC 10 making lunch specials, the mid-day food sales should continue to improve. Not only are these sales critical to business, but they are also very important to the long-term aspirations of the pub, Houck said.
He said Kildare's must keep its food sales high enough to balance out its alcohol sales, in order to avoid the same fate as Shaggy's.
"We have great food specials which we are marketing heavily to make sure we don't do that," he said. Also, with the return of students, the pub has been extra careful to prevent entry to minors. Kildare's uses a strict security policy to make sure it stays on good terms with the city.
The lines seem to do little to detract from business, Murphy said, as Kildare's has seen customers coming back for a second or third time.
Houck said he is very confident busy nights will continue.
"We're excited to be here," he said. "Newark's a great town and we definitely want to stay."
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