Restaurant opens at Middletown’s old Canoe Club location

MIDDLETOWN, Conn. (WTNH) — After a three-year renovation, a landmark restaurant on Middletown’s waterfront opened on Monday.

What was known as the old Canoe Club is now called Tate’s Restaurant.

The location may be the same, but the food is a bit different.

“[It’s] comfort seafood fare,” said Rocco LaMonica, the new restaurant’s co-owner. “Focus on raw bar. Focus on fresh seafood.”

He said the ambiance is much improved.

“Welcoming staff, fun cocktails, cleanliness were a lot of things we focused on,” LaMonica said.

He and his wife, Aubrey, also own Eli Cannon’s in Middletown and Noah’s in Essex. They first put in their proposal to run this city-owned property in February 2021. They, and many others, are excited this day has come.

Maria Nicol and Donna Marsden were the very first customers.

“The atmosphere is wonderful,” Nicol said.

The restaurant is a significant part of the city’s larger riverfront revitalization “Return to the Riverbend” project, which includes a raised pedestrian walkway connecting the redeveloped waterfront to Main Street.

“[It’s] nice to build up along the waterfront here, and maybe it will help businesses downtown,” said Bonnie Aparo, of Middletown.

But while Tate’s Restaurant has much-acclaimed views, there are also flooding concerns.

LaMonica said a lot of people think when the restaurant floods, it comes from the river side of the building. But, he said it comes from the front of the restaurant, so that when the parking lot is flooded, a lot of times that water comes right in.

The renovations took that into account, using a polished concrete floor and vents at the bottom of the support columns. Those allow any flood waters that come in to flow back out.

“The front of the bar can be lifted up and removed in six-foot pieces, brought upstairs,” LaMonica said. “Our benches can be brought upstairs.”

The outdoor space is still a work in progress.

“Look at that gorgeous patio out there,” Nicol said. “It’s gonna be beautiful.”

The stamped concrete patio still needs to be poured, but it is expected to be open in time for Memorial Day weekend.

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