Goldy's Restaurant returns to New London

March 08, 2011 11:00 pm • Last Updated: March 09, 2011 1:23 pm

By By LEE HOWARD Day Staff Writer

Paty Daignault, left, of Waterford, a waitress at Goldy's Restaurant on Colman Street in New London, takes the breakfast order of patrons Phyllis Drake and her husband, Allen, of New London, Tuesday as the restaurant reopens with new owners Anita Miller and her daughter Rachel Barclay, both of New London. The Drakes were longtime patrons at the former Goldy's.

New London - It's like Goldy's never left.

Goldy's Restaurant, a popular eatery on Colman Street for much of the 1980s and 1990s, is back serving its New England clam chowder, Goldy Burgers and waffle fries. And the restaurant once referred to as "the diner with a Midas touch" is still in the family, run by original owner Shelly Goldstein's daughter, Anita Miller, and granddaughter, Rachel Barclay.

"We just got sick of hearing 'When are you coming back?'" Miller said. "The timing was right." The 5,000-square-foot, 200-seat restaurant reopened quietly late last month, with the older Goldstein serving as an ambassador from the golden days of Goldy's, though he's not involved in the day-to-day operations. His wife, Louise, also once active in the restaurant, died two years ago.

"We're happy to have Goldy's back," said Jock Broccoli, a regular customer from years ago who stopped by for breakfast Tuesday.

"The food is good, the service is good - we're very happy with it."

"Most important, it's nice and clean," added table mate Joe Carabatta.

Other restaurants that replaced Goldy's, most recently the New London Diner and previously the Road Kill Cafe, didn't fare as well, each lasting less than a year. In between, Anita's brother Leonard Goldstein operated the popular Gridlock Grille for several years at the same site before passing it on to operators later evicted for nonpayment of rent.

Years before, the Goldsteins for a brief time operated the restaurant as a franchise called Lum's. The family last operated Goldy's in 1997, though people referred to it by the old name through the location's various incarnations over the years.

"People like a family-owned place," said co-owner Miller, a New London High School graduate who waitressed at Goldy's years ago. "People like the owner stopping by their table and saying hello."

Patrons also remember co-owner Barclay, who practically grew up at Goldy's, clearing tables starting at age 10.

Miller recalls with a smile that she used to weigh her daughter on a restaurant scale because Barclay was so thin as a child.

"Hopefully, my grandchildren will work here when they're old enough," she said.

Goldy's always has been known for serving good food at a fair price, said Len Goldstein, who is helping with the opening of the restaurant. Fresh seafood is a staple, he said, and plans call for the return of a lobster tank that graced Goldy's in its heyday.

"We've got a perfect location for people in New London or off I-95," he said.

The restaurant currently has about a dozen employees, including Paty Daignault, former owner of Paty's Shaw's Cove Deli, but Miller expects to have at least 20 workers hired by the time the family eatery is fully up and running. At its height, Goldy's employed 30 to 40, she added.

The reopened restaurant, which will start serving dinners for the first time today, features a renovated full bar, as well as new equipment and a light-filled greenhouse dining room that Miller plans to restock with plants.

A breakfast bar installed by a previous operator has been taken out, and other small touches, such as repainting, remain to be done, Miller said.

The menu hasn't changed much. Miller retained the same numbering system from years ago, so someone used to asking for the No. 11 Hangover Breakfast or No. 12 Len's Favorite can come in and order as if time had stopped for a quarter-century or so.

"There's something for everyone," she said.

This month, the restaurant is rolling back prices to 1982 levels on its $5.99 corned beef and cabbage dinner in recognition of the beginnings of Goldy's. So far, Goldy's has not advertised in a traditional way, relying on Facebook to get the word out, the family said.

"Word's spreading pretty fast," Miller said. "Every day, it's getting busier and busier."

l.howard@theday.com

Anita Miller, co-owner of Goldy's Restaurant on Colman Street in New London, speaks on Tuesday with her father, original owner Shelly Goldstein, as the restaurant reopens with new owners Miller and her daughter Rachel Barclay, both of New London.