A dream realized: Middletown couple purchases Dover’s Gray Fox Grille

DOVER — Barry Alvis did a lot of searching to make a dream come true for his wife.

Cassandra Alvis’ wish of becoming a restaurateur came to fruition when the couple found exactly what they were looking for at 140 S. State St. — home of the Gray Fox Grille & Public House.

They immediately knew it was the place.

“I’ve been with her for 24 years — married for 20 — so you’ve got to support each other’s dreams, goals and aspirations, so I’m here for her,” Mr. Alvis said. “This is her passion — restaurants — so this is what she wants to do.

“After 20 years of marriage, I was counting her no for 20 years. … She put herself through college waiting, but it was her passion. Years later, when I found this, I was like, ‘All right, honey, I’ve got you. I’ve got a good opportunity.’”

A meeting with the eatery’s then-owner, Diana Welch, sealed the deal, as the Alvises discovered they could buy the historical property and all the establishment’s equipment, plus retain the staff, for $600,000.

It was the end of a rigorous search by the husband and wife, who had explored opportunity after opportunity.

“We looked at strip malls,” Mr. Alvis said. “They want $12,000 or $15,000 for rent, and you can’t make any money. Then, we looked at Bennigan’s because she worked at Bennigan’s growing up through college, and they were trying to revitalize Bennigan’s.”

The Ohio native added, “We met with the owner, and we went through like the third or fourth phase, but then, they started asking for money, and somebody said, ‘Well, he shouldn’t be asking for money yet.’ So, we finally backed off from that.”

Mr. Alvis attended Delaware State University, and the couple had lived in Burlington, New Jersey, for around 14 years until a friend told them about Middletown.

They ended up purchasing a house there and have been Delawareans for seven years.

Their meeting with Ms. Welch brought them to Kent County.

“It was just about the numbers for me,” Mr. Alvis said. “It just made sense because we bought the building, and everything was in the building. It got appreciated for a lot more than what we bought it for, so if it doesn’t work out, we can still sell the business but own the building.”

He went on to say that it was a pleasure working with Ms. Welch to help Ms. Alvis realizes her lifelong dream.

“We took over April 16. That’s when we closed on the place,” he said. “Diana was great. She had several offers to sell. Somebody wanted to make a Chinese store, and somebody wanted to make a convenience store, and she said no.

“When she found us, my wife was like, ‘We’re not going to change anything. We’re going to keep everything the same and keep the employees,’ and (Ms. Welch) said yes. She stayed with us 30 days to help transition, so day 1, we were profiting.”

To show their appreciation, the new owners will be hosting a going-away party for Ms. Welch tonight at the Gray Fox.

Mr. Alvis said the couple is excited about the revitalization in the downtown corridor and wanted to be a part of it.

He also stressed that he would like to attract an older crowd and avoid the pitfalls some other drinking establishments in the area have experienced.

“We’re just trying to bring a nightlife to downtown Dover,” Mr. Alvis noted. “My demographic is 35 and over, and I want to stay true to that. We have a lot of regulars, and they love my wife, so we try to cater to them. We’re open to everybody.”

The Gray Fox has separate menus for brunch, lunch, dinner, banquet and late-night fare, from gourmet tacos to steaks, salmon and just about everything in between. Its meats, dairy, vegetables and fresh herbs are all locally sourced.

In addition, the Alvises said they are continually improving the Gray Fox experience. For example, they rebuilt the deck during their second week of ownership.

“I just got two new TVs two weeks ago, and a lot of the regulars have been saying they want to watch football, but I don’t want to take away from the restaurant,” Mr. Alvis added, “so I said, ‘All right, we’re going to do football outside.’”

He also plans to close the deck with a tentlike structure when the weather cools.

As far as other entertainment, local one-man band Danny Beck plays on the deck on the second Saturday of each month during lunch, while area favorite Sol Knopf performs for the dinner crowd inside.

Plus, “we’re trying to create a lineup for our fourth Saturdays,” Mr. Alvis said. “Every other weekend, we’re going to have a lineup all night, and it caps it off with old-school hip-hop and R&B.”

The spouses believe they are in a good place right now.

“The response has been fantastic so far,” Mr. Alvis said. “We come to work every day. You’ve got to make it work. It’s the goal, and we’re trying to give our kids a better life and leave them something.”

Staff writer Mike Finney can be reached at 302-741-8230 or [email protected].
Follow @MikeFinneyDSN on X.