7 Towns In Delaware With Thriving Local Businesses

Thanks to an attractive corporate legal system, Delaware has more businesses than people. Around two million active business entities were incorporated in this tiny state, including roughly two-thirds of Fortune 500 companies. But we are not here to celebrate Delaware's corner-cutting corporations. Rather, we are focusing on full-figured independent businesses, especially the restaurants, breweries, markets, and mom and pop shops that occupy Delaware's small towns. Learn about these seven Delaware communities and then patronize their lively local businesses.

Lewes

First up is a city the size of a small town. Lewes has around 3,303 residents and plenty of booming businesses according to us. But do not take our word for it. Wander Lewes' historic downtown and stop for an omelette at Bramble & Brine at The Buttery, shellfish at the Lewes Oyster House, famous buns at the Lewes Bake Shoppe & Notting Hill Coffee Roastery, and pan roasted organic Amish chicken at Heirloom, which is a fine dining restaurant in a white Victorian abode from the turn of the 20th century. You will not lose your appetite—or interest—in Lewes.

Middletown

In contrast to Lewes, Middletown is a town the size of a small city. Approximately 23,000 people call Middletown home and many more call it a Delaware dining destination. The First State Brewing Company fascinates foodies with its craft beer and lovingly crafted meals. Curry & Cocktails captivates pub crawlers with its bountiful booze and Indian foods. And Kiku Japanese Steakhouse & Sushi seduces sightseers with its teppanyaki, hibachi, and other styles of Japanese cooking. Attracting tourists in a variety of ways is the Dutch Country Farmers Market, which offers "all the pleasures of Amish country in one place." These pleasures include produce, pastries, dairy products, meat, flowers, crafts, and even furniture. It will be a pleasure doing business with them.

Laurel

Laurel is another compact Delaware community with a Dutch Country Market. After sampling meats, cheeses, candies, baked goods, veggies, seasonings, jellies, and condiments in Amish land, you can taste the modern world in downtown Laurel. Though quaint, it boasts several contemporary chow huts. Chief among them are Tacos Chabelita, a highly rated Mexican restaurant; Laurel Pizzeria, an award-winning pizza joint that recently opened another location in Seaford; and Smash N' Dash Burgery, a burger palace that is also expanding its kingdom to Seaford. Although they do not qualify as vibrant modern businesses, Laurel's Potato Houses deserve a mention alongside the other haunts for their past sweet potato supremacy. About a dozen such houses, which stored spuds during Delaware's early-20th-century potato boom, speckle the countryside and are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Laurel can rest on its many laurels.

Milton

Milton is a neighbor of Lewes and has a similar population and allure. Around 3,300 residents and innumerable tourists get charmed by a variety of local businesses. The Milton Theatre has been enlivening Union Street since circa 1910 with movies, concerts, plays, festivals, stand-up comedy shows, children's classes, and stunning architecture. Over on Mulberry Street sits Tequila Real, whose namesake tequila can give you a real good buzz. Guarding the outskirts of town is the Po' Boys Creole Restaurant, which is an unexpected but much-needed Cajun haven far away from Louisiana. Last but certainly not least is the Dogfish Head Milton Brewery, a building on Village Center Boulevard that blends food, drink, art, fashion, and special events. Customers can tour the brewery, sample beer, eat food, buy merch, admire the avant-garde Steampunk Treehouse, and listen to live music.

Smyrna

A rather large town by Delaware standards, Smyrna has no shortage of shops and eateries. The best of these, according to locals, are Main Street Market, whose better-than-good goods have been family-made for over four generations; Brick Works Brewing & Eats, a brewpub that uses locally sourced ingredients for both its beer and food; and Boondocks Restaurant and Store, which serves local seafood and other hometown culinary staples in a backyard party atmosphere. Smyrna's most savory staple, Maverick Texas BBQ, closed in 2021. But do not fret: its iconic building is to house Hamilton's Haven, a fine dining restaurant that relocated from Newark. It is expected to have 134 standard seats and a 14-seat chef’s table for monthly socials. The doors are set to open in mid-August 2024.

New Castle

New Castle is another town-sized Delaware city. Roughly 5,500 people have year-round access to New Castle's inns and taverns, which are more authentic than in other locales. Jessop’s Tavern is a colonial-style restaurant in a building that was actually constructed during colonial times. You can eat and drink where, according to Jessop’s website, the titular barrelmaker Abraham Jessop lived in the 1700s. Just a few doors down from Jessop’s is the Terry House, a mid-19th-century dwelling turned into a celebrated bed & breakfast.

Continuing the throwback theme is the New Castle Farmers Market, a 70-year-old bazaar that sells an incredible array of products, including, of course, Pennsylvania Dutch goods. Make sure to try the Amish pretzels.

Rehoboth Beach

As a seaside vacation destination, Rehoboth Beach needs plenty of businesses to filter the summer flood of tourists. Some have been perfecting that task for decades. The Back Porch Café has been slow-cooking food and stirring drinks on Rehoboth Avenue for over 50 years. It still makes everything, besides baguettes, in house. The Robin Hood Restaurant opened around the same time as the Back Porch but goes back even further, to 1948, as the Robert Lee Restaurant. It survived changes in name, ownership, architecture, and safety (Hurricane Jonas, Blizzard of '96, etc.) to serve esoteric omelets to modern foodies. And then there is Zelky's, a 39-year-old family-run arcade with not one, not two, but three locations in Rehoboth, plus a donut stand. Those thrills are extra thrilling when you know that Rehoboth began as an ultra-modest Christian retreat.

Forget Delaware's faceless corporations and get face to face with its local businesses. Gobble sticky buns in Lewes, graze Amish produce in Middletown, stuff yourself with tacos in Laurel, sample craft beer in Milton, slurp seafood in Smyrna, test historic pillows in New Castle, and try not to hit your head on Rehoboth Beach's rides. The only thing left to do, after facing the best businesses in small-town Delaware, is to smile.