WILMINGTON — Almost a month after Coco Pippa announced its closure on Castle Street, a new tenant is already working to upfit the building into a community sandwich shop and bar.
Rook’s Neighborhood Pub and Deli is hoping to open at 506-508 Castle St. by the beginning of 2027, according to owner Ivan “Chip” Moore. Moore began renovating the space two weeks ago, with his business partners — wife Noelle Vandermark, Joe Sena, and Deanna and Frank Iadicicco.
“Between the four of us, I think we have 100 years of restaurant experience,” he said.
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Sena and Moore are the founders behind Tacobaby, Runcow, Whiskey Tango Foxtrot and Underfront, all of which they’ve upfitted, operated and sold over the years. Moore said he took the last year off after he and Sena offloaded Underfront. While the time spent with his wife and two children — 11-year-old and 10-month old daughters — have been well worth it, Moore’s excited to take on a new project, one he said he plans to hang onto a while.
“I’m ready to get back to my roots. My first job at 15 was in a deli shop, Galley’s, in Smithfield, and they had the best Italian sub ever,” Moore said, noting he hopes to mimic it at Rook’s.
The menu, while still being devised, will consist of hot and cold sandwiches and subs and homemade sides — think pasta and potato salads, etc.
Bread will be sourced locally and there will be top-tier meats brought in to devise the handhelds, such as prime beef, pastrami, turkey, ham and the like. Sauces and condiments will be homemade as well, bringing the same artisan attention to the sandwich as Moore has done with cocktails.
“My whole thing is taking tried-and-true standards and elevating them — putting a spin on it,” he said, noting his aim for price points is between $12 and $14.
Moore envisions specials as well, such as a pimento cheese and bacon or chicken salad with Balsamic glaze on a croissant.
“But we haven’t really decided on anything yet,” he noted. “We’re still in the very early stages.”
Appetizers, salads, soups and desserts will be on the menu as well. Homemade soups will be a mainstay — something Moore said his partner Deanna has been dialed in on when she owned and operated a cafe in upstate New York.
While Moore’s primary foray in the last decade has been craft cocktails, he still will have a hand behind the bar. But it will be focused on beer, wine and a more simple list of sippers — ”not the 35-deep craft cocktail menu items we’ve been doing.” he said.
But before they can turn out the first bite, Moore and crew are renovating the building. The bar top will be custom made out of a slab of poplar, the floors and all walls will be refinished, and the design aesthetic, being somewhat farmhouse adjacent, will include warm woods.
The building was constructed in 1948, leaning into the partners’ love for historic upfit as well.
The renovation already has come with some hard choices. Passersby may have noticed the famed “Greetings from Castle Street” mural painted over in the last week. It was designed by Jimmy Dean, also known as Graffiti by Manix, painted with the help of Tiffany Machler, who goes by Art by Nugget, during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Moore, who also majored in art in college, said the mural would have been chipped and cracked during renovations of the building. It has boarded up windows and rotted windowsills that need replacing, not to mention they’ll be patching walls.
“I knew we were going to catch some flak for it and it broke my heart painting over it,” Moore said of the mural, “but we did it out of necessity as there was no way to get the building up to where it needed to be without the mural being affected. Now, we are looking at it as a huge blank canvas to do something on in the future.”
Moore said his business partners spoke with one of the artists ahead of time as well.
Machler, who serves on the board of the Carolina Beach Mural Project, had designed a rainforest mural inside Coco Pippa, in addition to helping Dean with the outdoor artwork. She said she stopped into the store one day while the Iadiciccos were there working and asked to take photos inside and outside before they painted over it.
“It was inspired by all the greeting and postcard-style murals that a lot of cities have some variation of all over the country.” Dean told Port City Daily, noting it took two weeks to finish with Machler.
Both artists cumulatively have done more than 50 murals across town and have had their art work painted over. Machler said there have been three or more this year alone she has watched disappear.
“But it’s the cost of doing business,” Dean said. “I’ve been doing this long enough to be able to let it go and realize that times change, business owners change, building plans and development changes, art styles change. It’s just the nature of the business. As long as the original mural Nugget and I painted on Castle Street was in any way inspiring to people of the community, that’s all that really matters to me.”
Machler said it’s always tough to watch her work fade, but added it’s also costly keeping up with the maintenance touch-ups and refinishes, if they aren’t covered by business owners, sponsorships and other funding sources. Castle Street Greeting was a community-supported effort as the building’s owner Kent Tomaselli, was in full support and put up his own money to bring it to life, according to Machler.
“But upkeep often comes out of the artist’s pockets,” she said.
Machler, who is speaking on a creative economy panel Wednesday at NEX Connect Cape Fear at CFCC Union Station, said she is open to doing other work for Rook’s, if asked.
Moore and his partners are floating a few different ideas but haven’t firmed up decisions on how to replace the mural. It could include commissioning a new piece altogether, hosting a community mural to get the neighborhood involved or doing a rotation of murals every couple of years to showcase varied local artists.
“I love the Caste Street area and used to live on 8th Street, so it’s my old stomping ground,” Moore said, noting the murals certainly are part of its appeal. “It’s just a vibrant area.”
By the time the 1,500-square-foot restaurant is open, 506-508 Castle St. will seat more than 40 people indoors and on the front patio. But the real selling point, according to Moore, is the large backyard area, about 29,000 square feet, with a large, 100-year-old agave plant. Rook’s has “endless” opportunities there, from hosting live music and neighborhood gatherings to also leaning into its name with, perhaps, some chess tournaments taking place.
Moore said the chess pieces will be used in decor as well.
While he suspects the majority of business will be conducted during lunch hours, the bar will be open if clientele calls for it even after the kitchen closes. He suspects it to be around 9 p.m. on weeknights, but later during weekends.
“We signed a 10-year lease on the building,” Moore added, noting the goal is to be immersed in the community for a while.
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