Egg gets OK from ABC commissioner

Melissa Moore can finally open Egg, her breakfast restaurant, in the former McQuay’s Market in Rehoboth Beach.

Alcohol Beverage Control commissioner John Cordrey granted Moore's request to serve alcohol at her 510 Rehoboth Ave. restaurant Aug. 8 after hearing from the neighbors who protested the application.

Moore also dealt with pushback from neighbors when she went before Rehoboth's board of commissioners earlier this year.

Egg will have 48 indoor seats and offer a high-end breakfast menu. There will also be eight outdoor patio seats.

“I'd like to offer upscale, trendy breakfast food in a quaint atmosphere with appropriate cocktails to accompany the dishes,” Moore said. “It would be a crime to serve butter-poached lobster waffles without a glass of champagne.”

Egg will operate from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. Moore said she plans to open in September.

The majority of those against the liquor license reside in the neighboring Cottages by the Sea, a 12-unit condominium complex. Mary Lou Kupfer said she is concerned about noise, traffic and parking.

“This is already a heavily trafficked approach to Rehoboth,” she said. “Most people are focused on getting into the circle. During the summer weekends, traffic is pouring down that street.”

The building was previously home to a produce market and a sandwich shop and, Kupfer said, customers often used the condo's driveway as a parking lot. She said the condo association put up signs to indicate private parking and even had cars towed.

Landlords Paul and Cindy Lovett recently added a seven-space parking lot specifically for the restaurant. In addition, six metered parking spaces on Rehoboth Avenue in front of the restaurant and spaces on nearby Canal Street are often open for parking, they said.

Neighbor Joe Herbert was also concerned about traffic. He questioned the feasibility of opening a restaurant in that location.

“I just don't think the property lends itself to a restaurant,” he said. “If you could stand on Rehoboth Avenue and see the traffic, especially on a Saturday morning, it's frightening. It takes me awhile to get out of the driveway on my bicycle, let alone in a car.”

In his statement approving Egg's liquor licenses, Cordrey said, he cannot deny a liquor license based on parking and zoning concerns. That, he said, needs to be taken up with Rehoboth officials. In the event Moore plans to stay open later than 5 p.m., Cordrey said, she must readvertise because it would be considered a substantive change.