By Michael P. Walsh
Special to the Voice
Mayor Nancy R. Rossi cut a “West Haven blue” ribbon with Pub 34 owners Dottie Newman and Ginny Newman-Durso on Oct. 6 to celebrate the restaurant’s grand opening at 439 Derby Ave.
The rebuilt location, formerly Gin Dee’s Cafe, overlooks the city’s bustling Route 34 business corridor — hence 34 in the pub’s name — and features an outdoor patio.
The sisters closed the cafe at the dawn of the coronavirus pandemic in March 2020 after operating the establishment since their mother, Dorothy DeRosa, purchased the building in 1979.
After their mother died in 2018 at age 98, they decided to rebrand the business, rolling out the red carpet for a concept restaurant with the glitz and glamour of the golden age of Hollywood that honored her memory.
Rossi and the owners marked the ribbon-cutting with state Rep. Treneé McGee (D-116); City Council Chairman Peter V. Massaro (D-6), and council members Gary Donovan (D-at large), and Colleen O’Connor (R-at large); City Clerk Patricia C. Horvath; Rossi Executive Assistant Louis P. Esposito Jr.; and Simon McDonald, the director of membership and marketing for the Milford Regional Chamber of Commerce.
They were joined by chamber President Michael Moses, chamber board member Alan R. Olenick and a delegation of chamber members, including West Shore Associates owner Erin Eberhardt and New England Collision Vice President of Operations John Kraemer, both of West Haven, and Edward Jones financial adviser Jay Borelli and Patriot Bank Vice President Robert Creigh, both of Milford.
They were also joined by City of West Haven Fire Department Allingtown Chief Michael R. Terenzio and Deputy Chief Michael T. Esposito.
Throughout Pub 34, Tinseltown of the 1940s and ’50s is represented in style, with classic knickknacks and portraits of Hollywood icons adorning the walls and paying homage to a bygone era of showbiz.
The sisters pointed out that their mother’s 1901 piano is the centerpiece of The Cabaret Room, just across from the oldfangled bar.
The pub’s menu offers made-to-order fare, including burgers, chicken wings, nachos, macaroni and cheese, sandwiches, and fish and chips.
Pub 34 serves lunch from noon-3 p.m. and dinner from 4-8 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday. Otherwise, it is open later for cocktails, of course, spotlighting such Hollywood-themed libations as The Celebrity and The Screenwriter.
The owners also plan to book bands and DJs playing the music that defined the period of Hollywood grandeur.