WILMINGTON, DE—Who says the mom and pop retailer/restaurant model is dead? Certainly no one in Delaware, one of the smallest states in the country where for obvious reasons word of mouth can be the coin of the realm for such businesses. Two recent restaurant sales in the state, both brokered by Patterson-Woods Commercial Properties/CORFAC International, illustrate the resilience of these local tenants in an industry that is increasingly dominated by national brands. Interestingly, one of these transactions also embodies another trend as well – the influx of EB-5 money and the inroads it is making in even the most local of dining spots.

In the first deal, Joe Latina, a principal with the firm, represented an LLC formed by two brothers, Stephen B. Lucey & Michael C. Lucey, in the purchase of a 5,400-square-foot restaurant building located at 20859 Coastal Highway in Rehoboth Beach. The seller was Captain's Table Limited Partnership and Allan Lynch Rev Trust & Village Cupboard. The property traded for $1.9 million.

The deal also included a second parcel with an approximately 6,912-square foot, two story building. The ground level is leased to a liquor store and the second story has three apartments.

The Lucey brothers are the owner/operators of Six Paupers Tavern & Restaurant in Hockessin and Ulysses American Gastropub Wilmington. They plan to convert the restaurant building they just acquired into a new gastro-bub concept named 'The Forgotten Mile Alehouse' – a reference to the stretch of highway between the two popular resorts of Dewey Beach and Rehoboth Beach.

In the second, separate transaction, Jester & Sons LLC sold Hunter's Den Restaurant to the Xia Zhao/Tian Cheng Development, LLC for $960,000. The 5,810-square foot restaurant sits on 1.85 acres of land and is located at 3517 Old Capitol Trail in Wilmington.

In this deal as well, the sale included an adjacent two-story, 1,995-square-foot building, located at 3513 Old Capitol Trail. In this case, the building is used as the business's corporate operations. Latina and Mary Ann Heesters of Patterson-Woods together represented the seller and procured the purchaser.

The hunting-themed Hunter's Den has been operating as a family-owned restaurant for over thirty years. There are three dining rooms, a buffet area, and a lounge that frequently hosts live bands and entertainment. The new owners, Chinese investors, purchased the restaurant as an investment and plan to initially continue to operate the business as Hunter's Den.

This is a successful foreign investor acquiring a development opportunity and perhaps a path toward US citizenship, Latina tells GlobeSt.com. "I have a sense that this trend will continue with many restaurants and businesses, all over the US being acquired or created using the EB-5 programs or similar programs with foreign investment funds."

"Despite the strong growth in chain restaurants, the independent restaurant is still a strong part of our culture and successful restauranteurs are tapping into what the consumer wants," Latina says.

Latina also leased a restaurant at 59 E. Main Street in Newark, to Asian investors that renovated the space and re-opened the restaurant as 'Colorful Yan Nun.' The Chines restaurant quickly became popular among the students at nearby University of Delaware.

"Craft beer and gastropub food is in strong demand, while the group that leased the Newark restaurant keenly observed that the university has a large Asian student population and the market was under-served for that type of cuisine," Latina says.