Delahanty's is getting a new identity, one that may soon be applied to the neighborhood around it.
Delahanty's Tavern on the Square was named for baseball hall-of-famer "Big Ed" Delahanty, an early 1900s player for Washington who died mysteriously at Niagara Falls.
Its new identity is derived from closer to home.
The Delahanty's sports bar atmosphere is officially giving way to the Phillipsburg-themed SoMa Downtown Grill.
The tavern closed at the end of 2015 after about 13 years in business, and owners Jim and Carole Diee have been making renovations both inside and out.
A soft opening is tentatively planned for the end of the month.
SoMa stands for South Main, the street on which the restaurant is located. And, coincidentally, SoMa is also a name being considered as a broad way to rebrand Phillipsburg's downtown.
"We just want South Main to be cool again," Diee said Thursday. "We always saw potential here."
The reopening comes as town officials are focusing efforts on the downtown. The council this week expressed interest in moving the municipal offices to the Main Street area, as well as other efforts to promote local business opportunities.
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"It's excellent news at it relates to business on Main Street," Alison Pickel, the chamber's executive vice president for Easton and Phillipsburg initiatives, said of the restaurant's reopening as SoMa. "We're really excited to get our Main Street, our business core running again."
Inside, SoMa will have photographs of other downtown buildings, Diee said. The menu will be trendier than the Delahanty's fare, but she said some old favorites will be kept at customers' requests.
On a larger scale, Diee said the establishment wants to be a player in community events and hopefully encourages others to participate in the town's rebranding.
"I'm hoping others get on the downtown bus," she said.
Steve Novak may be reached at snovak@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow him on Twitter @type2supernovak. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.