ANDOVER – A popular Andover Square restaurant forced to close in January will be reopening its doors at a new location next month.
West Side Deli closed its doors Friday, Jan. 23, after owner Rick Brest was told it would cost around $60,000 to install a vent hood system to cook inside the converted covered bridge the restaurant was operating from.
West Side Deli was a popular spot in Andover, and last year hosted and served about 250 people during a free community Thanksgiving dinner. The restaurant also offered a free lunch program Monday through Friday, 11 a.m.-1 p.m. for children during summer break.
“Because we understand sometimes kids look forward to lunch at school and (it may be) the only meal they get,” Brest wrote in a Facebook post. “We are not here to judge.”
“We have obtained the old Bella’s/Hotspot restaurant and it will be open the week of (Monday,) May 4,” Brest said.
The former Bella’s Lakehouse is located at 6497 State Route 85, just a half mile down the street from the covered bridge where West Side Deli worked before.
“We will be bringing back the free school lunches this year during summer break and we will plan on a free Thanksgiving dinner again,” Brest said of the new home for West Side Deli.
Working out of the converted covered bridge, cooks at West Side Deli worked under a temporary permit, cooking outside the restaurant in a tent until Brest could secure the proper permitting to move inside.
During the permitting process, Brest learned he would need to install a vent hood and fire-suppression system, with all bids coming in at about $60,000, which he said was not a workable figure for the restaurant’s budget.
The single most-popular menu item West Side Deli sells is its Philly cheesesteak – which requires a grill – which requires a vent hood to draw out smoke and a fire-suppression system in case of an emergency – which required a prohibitive capital investment, according to Brest.
