The Del-Mar Restaurant will open later this month, filling a building on Ashmun Street that has been empty since shortly after the COVID-19 pandemic started.
Owners and long-time Sault Ste. Marie residents Brent and Lynde Blair are close to opening the Italian American-style restaurant. The couple purchased the two-story building in 2024 and have been renovating it for nearly two years. The second story includes apartments that are fully occupied by renters. The basement will be used as an event space, seating up to 120 people for the restaurant.
“We gutted everything but the walls,” Lynde Blair said.
She is eager to open by Memorial Day weekend at the latest.
“I’ll go crazy if we don’t open by then,” she added with a laugh. “It’s been a long time coming.”
Just about everything in the restaurant is new, from the kitchen to heating, air conditioning, wiring, windows and doors. The Blairs renovated a 50-foot bar in the lowest level for the event space. The couple said the full building, including the basement, includes about 14,000 square feet.
Brent will be the lead chef and run the back of The Del-Mar Restaurant, while Lynde will oversee the front of the restaurant and be the face to patrons. The owners have hired about 30 employees for the restaurant, which will be open from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. seven days a week.
“We thought there was a need in the (Sault Ste. Marie) area, especially downtown, for this type of restaurant,” Lynde said. “We want to help bring more life to downtown.”
The Del-Mar Restaurant will serve an array of pasta dishes, from ravioli to gnocchi to chicken parmesan, along with upscale American fare like steak and burgers as well as seafood such as shrimp and salmon. All sauces, desserts and soups will be homemade, Lynde said. The restaurant will initially serve in-dining guests only, as Lynde indicated it will “ease into” takeout orders.
Lynde has worked as a server and at the front of restaurants throughout the area, while Brent has spent his career as a chef, cook and culinary teacher. They are confident that this restaurant will become a destination spot for residents in and around the Soo area.
“It’s been a lot of work (to renovate),” Lynde said. “I’m so ready to be open.”
The project was supported by a $984,399 Revitalization and Placemaking (RAP) grant and is expected to generate a total capital investment of just over $2 million, according to the Michigan Economic Development Corporation.
Learn more by visiting The Del-Mar Restaurant’s Facebook page.
This article originally appeared on The Sault News: New downtown Del-Mar Restaurant on track to open by Memorial Day weekend
Reporting by M. Alan Scott, Sault Ste. Marie News / The Sault News
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
