A popular downtown Brunswick restaurant is closing its doors after more than 30 years.
Joshua’s Restaurant and Tavern owner TJ Siatras announced Monday that his business will close on Saturday, Sept. 28. He said he expects an increase in sales as longtime patrons come to the historic building to reminisce about decades of memories.
“Our history and our existence probably say why someone might be willing to leave the industry,” Siatras said.
Siatras and his wife are now alone, and their children are on their own. Their daughter is pursuing a degree and a career outside of the restaurant industry. It was a tough decision, but the longtime restaurant owners say they have decided to give up the property.
Siatras’ grandmother and father took over the place in 1956 when it was still called Clare’s Grill. Over the years, the family converted it into a full-service restaurant. The name changed from Clare’s Grill to Clare’s Dolphin Restaurant and finally just Dolphin Restaurant before Siatras took it over and renamed it Joshua’s.
Siatras graduated from Cornell University with a bachelor’s degree in hotel and restaurant administration in 1985. He then moved to Atlanta, Georgia and worked as a housekeeping manager at the Ritz-Carlton. Siatras returned to Brunswick and in 1990 offered to help his parents open a new restaurant, and that’s how Joshua’s Restaurant and Tavern was born 35 years ago.
The restaurant was named after Joshua Chamberlain, a Civil War commander, governor of Maine, and sixth president of Bowdoin College.
“We’ve been committed to the responsibility of this business for a long time, and it’s time we could travel a little bit,” said Siatras. “The responsibility and commitment that an independent restaurant requires is more than we’re willing to take on at this time.”
In the 69 years the Siatras family has owned the restaurant on Maine Street in Brunswick, they have weathered the two closures of Brunswick Naval Air Station, several recessions and the recent COVID-19 pandemic.
“The business has always survived and I’m pretty proud of the fact that it’s been around for so long and has been so consistent,” Siatras said.
Joshua’s is listed through the Boulos Agency, a Portland-based real estate firm, and Siatras said a few people have expressed interest in the space.
“We wanted to make sure we gave our employees plenty of notice, so a one-month notice period is very reasonable,” Siatras said.
Siatras has mixed feelings about retiring from the restaurant, saying it’s not exactly exciting to continue without a plan.
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