If you haven’t eaten at the Tidewater Grille lately, you’ll find a few surprises on your next visit. But just because the restaurant has new owners, don’t expect too much to change.
“It was a diamond in the rough,” said Keith Sappington, who along with Ralph Shapot bought the business Sept. 8, 2007. “Everything we’ve done is what Ralph and I would like. We’ve made it a place where we’d like to hang out, a fun place.”
Changes made by the duo mostly are structural. The bar area is larger and separated from the dining area. Sappington and Shapot installed a glass half-wall to ensure bar patrons can enjoy the Tidewater Grille’s stunning view of the Susquehanna River and Chesapeake Bay. They replaced wallpaper throughout with bead board and wainscoting, and are installing an acoustical ceiling to muffle noise from the likely-to-be-lively bar.
The wood-plank porch now is enclosed to permit year-round use. Patrons can feel summer breezes and enjoy the sights, smells and sounds of the waterfront locale in summer, while enjoying the view in cooler months. A second outdoor patio also was added.
“We plan to have full moon parties, wine dinners, scotch dinners… This was a sleepy little town, but with expansion at Bulle Rock and the BRAC infusion, the potential is limitless,” Sappington said.
What have remained the same are serving high quality, fresh food and friendly staff. Regulars will see lots of familiar faces on their next visit. “Some people have worked here since they were 17,” he said.
Sappington brings extensive restaurant experience to the partnership. The Baltimore native holds a bachelor’s degree in professional cooking and baking, was sous chef and later executive chef at Red Brick Station in White Marsh, managed an organic food service organization and was part of the food service team at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County.
Shapot brings financial backing, vision and a life-long dream to the partnership. He worked his way through college as a busboy and short order cook, earning bachelors and master’s degrees in biology. He spent his career years protecting fisheries and the environment with companies like Texas Instruments and Westin. Professional milestones include supervising clean-ups of EPA Superfund sites, ground zero at the World Trade Center and southern Louisiana in the wake of Hurricane Katrina.
Shapot’s retirement plan was to own a waterfront pub. He loved Havre de Grace and was already familiar with the restaurant at the foot of Franklin Street. A Harley Davidson enthusiast, he’d chosen to eat there when a Rolling Thunder motorcycle run to Washington D.C. came through town.
Enter a business broker who called him when a contract to purchase the Tidewater Grille fell through. As Shapot moved forward with a purchase plan, he learned bankers were wary of his lack of restaurant management experience. The broker then introduced him to Sappington, whom he knew from a previous business deal.
Shapot said, “We hit it off right away. That’s what makes the parking situation so disappointing. Everything just fell into place.” (Editor’s note: see article in the HBL April 2008 print issue.)
Sappington said, “We spent about six months hanging out, deciding if we could get along. It works because we can always find a middle ground.”
Shapot now lives in Havre de Grace. “There is an easiness here. When people come to our restaurant, they are coming into our home. They can enjoy the food and the view and I can enjoy their company.”
The Tidewater Grille’s location and established good reputation made the restaurant a good investment for the pair. The Tidewater Grille is one of 45 Baltimore-area restaurants with a Frommer’s Travel Guide Review and one of only four with the organization’s highest rating.
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