Restaurateur Plans ’50s Ice Cream, Candy Shop to Replace Shuttered Brick Deli

A rendering of ‘Sammy’s Sweet Shop,’ planned for Herbertsville Road in Brick Township.

Earlier this year, Shorebeat reported on the closure of Tommy’s Kitchen, a deli and take-out restaurant that was the latest business to occupy the home of what was once the beloved Mama D’s Deli on Herbertsville Road. It now appears that a local restaurateur will be bringing a new business to the property and sprucing up the aging building to debut something new.

Making the rounds in social media this week has been an announcement by Chris Gullace, owner of the well-known Asbury Alehouse and Shore House bars, that the former deli will become an ice cream store known as “Sammy’s Sweet Shop” owned by him and his wife, Samantha. Gullace released a rendering of what is expected to be a highly-refreshed building to house the store after heavy renovations.

“It all starts with an idea,” Gullace posted. “Taking something that needs a lot of love, and bringing it back to life. We are working hard to bring some sweetness to Herbertsville Road.”

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The former Mama D’s Deli, Brick, N.J. (Credit: Sammy’s Sweet Shop)

The business already has an Instagram profile set up, promising “incredible ice cream with a 1950s parlor feel.” In several posts, it was announced that the forthcoming establishment will sell shakes, floats, egg creams and handmade sodas, as well as deep-fried deserts and candy.

The property is located at 365 Herbertsville Road, in the space that had long been known as Mama D’s Deli, a legendary Brick business that operated for decades. Owned by neighborhood resident George Hamill, the deli was once a major hub of activity along the corridor in northern Brick Township, with hot food served daily, newspapers from around the world stacked under the front counter, and staff members who customers knew for decades.

The deli was sold in 2006 and became known as Joey’s Neighborhood Deli, an offshoot of another deli in Manasquan, and was later sold to Tommy’s Kitchen, which forged its own good reputation at the site before announcing it would close its doors in March.

The 3,474 square foot building, built in 1950, has long housed food establishments on its quarter-acre property. The parcel is now located in the township’s new “Village Zone” which promotes mixed-use development and small businesses.