Four chefs with SoDel Concepts put their fried chicken dishes to the test in a friendly face-off May 17 at Bluecoast Seafood Grill + Raw Bar in Rehoboth Beach. The contest – a finale to the hospitality group's fried chicken month – was sponsored by Allen Harim, a poultry grower and processor, which provided the chicken.
Read MoreRehoboth Beach-based SoDel Concepts, a hospitality group with 10 restaurants, recently received the Restaurant Neighbor Award for Delaware. The award was created by the National Restaurant Association and American Express to honor outstanding community service and involvement. According to the National Restaurant Association, 90 percent of restaurants are involved in community activities in some fashion.
Read MoreThe Delaware Small Business Chamber on April 12 honored Rehoboth Beach-based SoDel Concepts with the President’s Award for Excellence during the Seventh Annual Blue Ribbon Awards Brunch.
Read MoreScott Kammerer, president of SoDel Concepts, recently announced the promotion of Charles Armstrong to the position of executive chef at Catch 54 in Fenwick Island, one of the hospitality group’s 10 restaurants.
Read MoreSoDel Concepts will celebrate Girl Scout Cookie month by featuring a different cookie in a series of special desserts. The proceeds will go to the Girls Scouts of the Chesapeake Bay.
Read MoreScott Kammerer, president of SoDel Concepts, recently announced the promotion of Shannon Colburn to the position of director of operations.
In her new role, Colburn oversees Bluecoast Seafood Grill + Raw Bar in Bethany Beach and Lupo Italian Kitchen in Rehoboth Beach.
Read MoreFor the fourth year in a row, Maurice Catlett, the executive chef at Matt's Fish Camp in Lewes, won the Best Wing on the Shore Contest in the Best Overall category. Organized by Ocean 98.1, the contest was held Jan. 28 in Lewes.
Read MoreThe Delaware Restaurant Association held its first-quarter board of directors meeting Jan. 24 and confirmed a new slate of executive officers who will also serve as ex officio members of the DRA's nonprofit Delaware Restaurant Association Educational Foundation.
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Ten SoDel Concepts employees recently earned a two- or three-night stay at the Conti di San Bonifacio Wine Resort in Tuscany, Italy.
The winners participated in a contest to see who could rack up the most points by selling Conti di San Bonifacio wines by the bottle and glass, as well as Conti di San Bonifacio olive oil during a specified time period.
Read MoreSoDel Cares will hold its third annual fundraiser from 6 to 9 p.m. Nov. 17 at Fish On, 17300 N. Village Main Blvd., Lewes. The event, which raises funds for the nonprofit foundation, pays tribute to the late Matt Haley, SoDel Concepts’ founder, who received the James Beard Foundation Humanitarian of the Year Award in 2014. The nonprofit has made contributions to organizations that help children, at-risk youth and adults and the elderly.
Read MoreThe deadly wildfires that consumed communities and property in northern California have left many wineries - and the resort areas that depend on them - in limbo. The devastating fires have affected homeowners, jobs and tourism. On Friday, Oct. 27, SoDel Concepts will donate a dollar for every glass or bottle of wine ordered that day to relief efforts. "The California wine country is near and dear to our hearts," said Mike Zygmonski, wine director for SoDel Concepts.
Read MoreSince Haley’s death, Kammerer, 43, has already earned the Delaware Restaurant Association’s 2016 Cornerstone Award and the Delaware State Chamber of Commerce’s Marvin S. Gilman Superstar in Business Award. He makes it look easy. It’s not. While he likes to have a plan, his path toward success was paved with big bumps and sharp detours.
Read MoreFresh off his success at the James Beard House in New York City, Chef Doug Ruley of SoDel Concepts headed off to Napa Valley, Calif., to participate in Bouchaine Vineyards' Chef Series Sept. 30. Bouchaine, the oldest continuously operating winery in the Carneros District, is owned by Gerret and Tatiana Copeland of Wilmington. Coastal residents and visitors who couldn't make the wine dinner shouldn't despair. On Thursday, Oct. 26, beginning at 6 p.m., Ruley and wine director Mike Zygmonski will recreate the Bouchaine dinner at Bluecoast Seafood Grill + Raw Bar in Rehoboth Beach.
Read MoreIf you’ve had a meal that you never wanted to end, then you have some idea what last weekend’s Bouchaine Vineyards wine dinner was like. The last in this season’s Chef Series, the event was choreographed by Douglas Ruley, executive chef for the Delaware-based SoDel Concepts restaurant group. The theme was Coastal Harvest.
Read MoreMike Zygmonski, the wine director for SoDel Concepts, was invited to attend Full Circle BevCon 2017, an industry event with more than 15 master classes and tastings from producers around the world.
Read MoreFor the fourth time, Doug Ruley, executive chef for SoDel Concepts, has been asked to cook at the James Beard House in New York, which puts him in a tie for the most times a chef has cooked at the former home of cookbook author and TV personality James Beard. The dinner, a salute to Delmarva, is scheduled for 7 p.m., Friday, Sept. 15, in the Greenwich Village townhouse.
Read MoreScott Kammerer, president of SoDel Concepts, recently announced the promotion of Meghan King to the position of director of training and development for the hospitality group, which has 10 restaurants along the coast and The Clubhouse at Baywood in Long Neck. King was previously the general manager of Lupo Italian Kitchen, SoDel's Italian restaurant in Rehoboth Beach.
Read MoreThe Milton Historical Society announced that Chef Maurice Catlett from Matt's Fish Camp Lewes will participate in the second annual King Cole Cannery Celebrity Chef Cookoff and Basket Raffle fundraiser set for 5 to 8 p.m., Saturday, Sept. 9, at the Milton Fire Hall.
Read MoreAs far as company-wide activities go, SoDel Concepts’ Summer Softball Showdown, held July 19 at Sports at the Beach in Georgetown, was a home run. More than 120 of the hospitality group’s employees signed up for the draft, which resulted in six teams. This year, Yellow Fever, led by Kris Medford, took home the trophy.
Read MoreLupo Italian Kitchen in Rehoboth Beach is one of six restaurants in Delaware to win a 2017 Wine Spectator Award. "Restaurants continue to raise their game when it comes to wine, and we are particularly proud to present this year's winners," said Marvin R. Shank, editor and publisher of Wine Spectator. Lupo, one of SoDel Concepts' 10 coastal Delaware restaurants, received an Award of Excellence for its well-chosen assortment of quality producers and a thematic match to the menu in price and style.
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