Miss Ashley’s Sub Shack, formerly of the corner of McFarland’s Cove Road and Rt. 129 in South Bristol, is open for business in a new location with a new menu, a new name and a decidedly new look.
Miss Ashley’s on the Wharf opened on Memorial Day weekend in the former downtown home of the Osier’s Wharf store.
In addition to the Philly cheese steaks and Philly-style subs the Sub Shack was known for, Miss Ashley’s on the Wharf offers Philly-style pizza and a wide array of seafood, including lobsters fresh from the adjoining dock.
The space doubles as a small grocery, with a large drink cooler (including beer and wine) as well as snacks, cigarettes, newspapers and gas from a single, roadside pump, a welcome development in a town where many residents live 10 miles from the nearest commercial gas station.
Miss Ashley’s co-owners Randy Hopper and Kandi Ellis, of South Bristol, extensively renovated the building, painting upstairs and down and installing a counter and several small, café-type tables downstairs. Diners can also enjoy the view from picnic tables on a small, upstairs deck, which “hasn’t been open in years,” Hopper and Ellis said.
Hopper hails from Philadelphia. His family owned a hoagie shop and a restaurant in New Jersey and, while growing up, he worked in diners and pizzerias.
A decade ago, however, Hopper was out of the restaurant business, running his construction company in New Jersey. “After 9/11, business died,” he said.
His parents were living in Maine and Hopper, too, moved north, where he met Ellis.
Ellis, originally from Waldoboro, also boasts extensive experience in food service, including stints at Hanley’s Market, Osier’s Wharf and the Bradley Inn.
Hopper and Ellis opened Miss Ashley’s Sub Shack in June 2010, naming the shop in honor of Ellis’ daughter, Ashley Ellis, who died on Aug. 16, 2009 at the age of 23.
After nearly a year in business, the couple wanted to expand. When the space downtown became available, it made sense to move in instead of starting from scratch. “Everything’s here,” Ellis said.
The seafood – a big part of the reason Miss Ashley’s needed the extra space and equipment – has proven wildly popular. The menu includes fried shrimp, scallops and calamari, haddock sandwiches and lobster and crab rolls. “[Ellis] is from Maine, so she knows seafood,” Hopper said.
“The haddock sandwiches are a big hit,” Hopper said. “They fly out of here.” So do the lobster rolls, he said, and, of course, the Philly-style sandwiches. “Everything really goes good,” Hopper said. In the summertime, with boat traffic, “this place goes crazy.”
The original Sub Shack is dormant for now, but Ellis and Hopper plan to re-open the location next summer, possibly as an ice cream shop.
For now, the couple has their hands full at the wharf location, in the heart of South Bristol’s bustling working waterfront, literally feet away from The Gut, the narrow channel that separates the mainland from Rutherford Island and its creaky (although generally reliable) swing bridge.
Hopper and Ellis are taking advantage of the location. They sell marine gas and diesel to local fishermen and buy lobsters from Osier’s Wharf, the working dock next door.
Recreational boaters can tie up at Miss Ashley’s dock, where Hopper keeps his 16-foot Boston Whaler at the ready for delivery by sea.
It’s quicker to reach Pemaquid by water, Hopper explained, and they’ll even meet hungry boaters on the water, so long as the boat can provide coordinates. The shop also delivers throughout South Bristol and Round Pond for a small fee.
Hopper and Ellis employ two people and plan to hire more, but they’re currently shouldering the bulk of the shopkeeping themselves. Hopper estimates he’s putting in up to 115 hours a week.
“The food’s great, the seafood’s excellent,” Hopper said. “We have a lot of experience and we take a lot of pride in what we do.”
Miss Ashley’s on the Wharf (2104 St. Rt. 129) is open Monday-Saturday, 7 a.m. to 10 p.m., and Sundays from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. To place an order, call 644-8101.
