Newark dining scene gets some spice

Upon returning to campus this week, students in search of a bite to eat found both new restaurants and changes to old favorites—changes made per students' and Newark community members' requests, according to the managers of Klondike Kate's and La Tonalteca.

Managers hope upgrades to existing Newark standbys, like Klondike Kate's expanded deck and a new patio at La Tonalteca, will attract new and returning customers.

    "The demand was there for it," said Lauren Hess, general manager of Klondike Kate's. "Hopefully students will recognize that we were trying to accommodate the things they were asking about."

New businesses Catherine Rooney's, Groucho's Deli, Main Street Sliders and Cheeburger Cheeburger offer variety to the Newark food scene.

Kate's expanded deck

Students looking to order some sunshine with their half-priced nachos might find Klondike Kate's expanded deck appealing. Kate's outdoor seating capacity has increased by more than 50 percent with the deck's addition. Hess said she expects the usual hour-and-a-half wait time to decrease, and larger parties will be able to sit together on the deck.

Senior Caroline Zarroli said the larger deck is a positive change to the restaurant, located at the corner of Main and Choate Streets.

"I've definitely noticed a shorter wait time to sit outside," Zarroli said. "The new deck has a lot more seats and is nicer than the old one."

Catherine Rooney's

The dining and bar scene may also be less cramped with the upcoming opening of Catherine Rooney's restaurant and pub, located near the intersection of Main and Academy Streets. This is the second Catherine Rooney's location—the original is located in Wilmington.     

Owners Joe and Gerry McCoy said Catherine Rooney's interior was designed to look like a pub in Dublin, Ireland. The interior was built in Ireland and shipped over, granting the pub Irish authenticity.

"It's going to be a place for gathering where you want to go with your friends to sit and talk," McCoy said. "That's what Irish pubs are all about."

Main Street Sliders

Main Street Sliders, which opened in May by the corner of Main and Haines Streets, is a new fast-service restaurant featuring mini sandwiches at cheap prices, which owner Jason Voit hopes will appeal to a large portion of the student body.

"We're open late seven days a week, which will attract people who come out of the bars or late-night studying," Voit said.

The most popular item is the original burger, a small beef patty with fried onions and cheese, Voit said.

A potential competitor, Cheeburger Cheeburger, is opening right next door to Main Street Sliders in the former Korner Diner location.

"I think there's room for both of us in town," he said. "We operate on different models, ours being fast services."

La Tonalteca's new deck

Opening sometime in September, La Tonalteca's new 50-seat patio is being constructed after patrons' repeated requests for outdoor dining space at the North College Avenue restaurant, manager Alfonso Mejia said.

"Customers were asking why we didn't already have a patio," Mejia said. "So we decided to build one to please current customers and attract new ones."

Junior Cait Lowe, a frequent customer at La Tonalteca, thinks the new patio will be a great addition to the restaurant.

"I go to La Tonalteca a lot, so I think I'd like to eat outside and not just feel like I'm in a cave when I go in there," Lowe said.

Groucho's Deli

Groucho's Deli also recently opened on Main Street, across from Ali Baba, and features specialty hot sandwiches with their signature Formula 45 dipping sauce, a homemade Thousand Island-based dressing. With its origins at the University of South Carolina, the sandwich shop's motto, "Helping Hangovers since 1941," is meant for college students, franchise owner David Richardson said.

"College students seem to really like it," he said. "It's the kind of food where it's filling, fresh and something different."

The most popular sandwich is the "STP," an open-face sub sandwich with roast beef, turkey, bacon bits and melted Swiss cheese, Richardson said.