WESTBROOK – A new restaurant has opened in a spot that has been empty for two years.
Doughboy’s Cafe? on Bridge Street, across from the Dana Warp Mill, was opened Jan. 4 by Tina Dougherty and her husband Chris.
They are Westbrook residents who moved their business from Portland’s Ocean Avenue, where it was known as the Back Cove Deli for a decade, she said.
She said the cafe? on Bridge Street is a better location that attracts more foot traffic, but she also thinks the economy is slowly starting to improve.
“I think it’s getting better for sure. It’s a little better than last year. You can see people starting to come out of it a little bit,” she said.
Keith Luke, the city’s economic and community development director, said that while Westbrook’s big employers such as Idexx have kept employment levels afloat through the recession, consumer confidence is always impacted by vacant storefronts in the downtown. His hopes have been buoyed by such events as the opening of Doughboy’s.
And even though things have been tough, Dougherty noted, there are good tools out there for businesses to get their names out. She said Doughboy’s is using Facebook to keep in touch with customers.
“If you’re willing to work hard,” she said, “there’s rewards.”
Copy the Story LinkSend questions/comments to the editors.
Success. Please wait for the page to reload. If the page does not reload within 5 seconds, please refresh the page.
Enter your email and password to access comments.
Hi, to comment on stories you must . This profile is in addition to your subscription and website login.
Already have a commenting profile? .
Invalid username/password.
Please check your email to confirm and complete your registration.
Only subscribers are eligible to post comments. Please subscribe or login first for digital access. Here’s why.
Use the form below to reset your password. When you've submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code.