Delaware Restaurateur, Quarter 4, 2015

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14 Quarter4
DRA Chairman of the Board
STEVE “MONTY” MONTGOMERY
Montgomery (known as “Monty” to
all who know him well) has served
as a DRA Board Member since 2010.
After graduating from Randolph-
Macon College, he worked in real estate
management in Washington, DC while
bartending and holding just about every
position there is at The Starboard,
where he worked every summer. In 1999
Monty partnered with Jim Weisgerber
and Dick Heidenberger to purchase the
famous Starboard restaurant from the
Hearn family, where he currently acts as
operating owner. He and his partners also
bought The Bottom Line in Washington
DC, where young Monty also used
to bartend, building very successful
cross promotions between the DC and
beach markets.
In 2004, Monty and partners opened
Bethany Blues in Bethany Beach, after
months spent traveling and researching
authentic regional barbecue techniques.
In 2007 they opened a second Bethany
Blues restaurant in Lewes. Also in
2007, Monty partnered with good friend
Steve Roop and purchased real estate
in Baltimore, MD where they built the
successful Portside Tavern in the Canton
Square neighborhood.
Monty joined Eric Sugrue of Big Fish
Grill and his partners in 2015 to take
over operation of Nick’s Fish House on
the water in south Baltimore. Part of
Kevin Plank’s Sagamore Development,
they have plans to continue to expand
and improve the operation while building
excitement for Under Armour’s main
campus to move into the community.
Also in 2015, the Starboard partnership
opened 99 Sea Level, in Bethany Beach’s
brand new Ocean Suites by Marriott.
This year-round, upscale restaurant
features fresh local seafood, a raw bar,
ocean front dining and a large private
banquet room.
Montgomery is an important advocate for
the restaurant industry and the business
owners of Dewey Beach, where he
formed the Dewey Business Partnership.
He frequently appears in Dover to speak
on legislative issues. A well-known
philanthropist, he is involved in many
community fundraisers, including The
Starboard’s “Dewey Goes Pink” which
benefits breast cancer research, and his
famous “Running of the Bulls,” befitting
local fire and police departments. Being a
life-long Washington Redskin fan, Monty
is proud to host a Starboard Bloody Mary
Bar inside the club level at Fed Ex Field.
He resides at the beach with his wife and
two young daughters.
Vice-Chairman
JEFF COOK
Cook has served as a DRA Board Member
since 2007. Cook grew up north of the
Motor City (Detroit, MI) in the small town
of Saginaw, MI. His first job was washing
dishes in a local restaurant chain, Bill
Knapp’s, while he was still a freshman
in high school. He worked his way to
general manager before leaving in 1994 to
join Ruby Tuesday’s in Virginia. There he
entered their managing partner program,
where he ran the 2nd busiest Ruby Tuesday
in the country before leaving to peruse his
dream of opening his own restaurant.
Cook and co-owner Tom Craft opened
their first 2 Fat Guys American Grill
and Catering in 2005, in Hockessin, DE.
In 2011 they opened a second location
in Greenville, DE, and added a 2 Fat
Guys To-Go, featuring takeout items,
in 2015 in North Wilmington. Cook
prides himself on building sales by
training and developing great teams. He
loves working with his team members
and hopes to help build skills that they
are able to take with them when they
move on to their career jobs, and he is
2016 Executive Committee!
Meet the
leadership
DRA