New Stratford Restaurant Is A Dream Come True For Owner

STRATFORD, CT — The grand opening of Nikki’s Beach House at Short Beach in Stratford was officially celebrated with a ribbon-cutting ceremony last Friday.

For owner/operator Nikki Capozzo-Hennessy the event was more than just a ceremony.

It was the culmination of a lifetime working in the restaurant business and now having a place of her own.

“It was a very emotional day,” Capozzo-Hennessy told Patch. “Even though we have been open for six months, and thankfully it's been a positive response, it was tough. I've always been a workhorse, but I really pushed myself here. We had just finished a year of small businesses closing all around us, and there was so much uncertainty in the business world, especially restaurants. I was opening a new business as a woman and basically alone, it was a little scary, but I knew I had a great support system and good experience from my previous positions.

“My family and friends were so proud at the celebration, and I'm so grateful to all those who helped me get where I am today. My parents taught me to never forget where you came from, so I won't. Always hustle, stay humble, words I live by. The celebration was like the bookend of my dream summer. I'm still flabbergasted the restaurant is mine.”

Nikki’s Beach House is located at 1 Dorne Drive at Short Beach Park and Golf Course. The restaurant features fresh seafood delivered daily for lunch and dinner, a full-service bar with signature cocktails, a brunch menu on Sundays, homemade desserts, live entertainment and an outdoor patio.

“Our restaurant strives to provide the best customer service and quality,” Capozzo-Hennessy said. “We really want our customers to feel warm and welcome. We understand that this is their time away from the grind, and we want everyone to come here and relax. We also understand that they have a choice every time they go out.”

Capozzo-Hennessy said they are always “trying to reinvent ourselves.”

“We try things and if they don’t work, we try something else,” she said. “We built an outside oasis this year with a tiki bar and fire pits and just added a movie screen and projector. We’ve just started to show movies, and we are hoping that it’s a success. Since opening, we’ve added a pizza place and a grab and go area for breakfast and lunch. Our deli case is filled with salads, meatballs, cutlets and of course our famous desserts, some made in house and some made by a single Stratford mom.”

While this is the first restaurant Capozzo-Hennessy has owned, she has been in the business for her entire working life. Capozzo-Hennessy has a culinary degree and a degree in hospitality and tourism, along with an accounting and marketing degree. She also went back to school and is just shy of a bachelor’s degree in nursing.

She also worked as the Food and Beverage Manager, the Director of Operations at Choate Rosemary Hall in Wallingford from 2006-2014.

“I always wanted a restaurant of my own and ran the Beach House for the prior owners for the duration of its existence,” she said.

Capozzo-Hennessy is involved with all aspects of the restaurant and credits her team for making it all possible.

“I have a wonderful team of employees, including my parents, who work breakfast on the weekends to ease my hours slightly and let me spend those mornings with my two children,” she said. “I have an awesome culinary team, who has spent the past five years with me – Wilver, Jeff, Carlos and Raul – as well as a great front of the house team – Kim, Paige, Logan, Christina, Layton, Kaylee and several others who we welcomed this year. And Rose, who does all the cleaning. My husband Brendan is the roundsman; he does the building of things, maintenance and whatever is on the to-do list.”

Capozzo-Hennessy said there have been some challenges related to the coronavirus pandemic, including high demand for products and rising market prices. She said they had to wait for three months for patio furniture at the beginning. The market has also forced them to make some menu changes to try and keep prices as low as possible for customers.

“There is still so much for me to learn,” Capozzo-Hennessy said. “I always say that you learn something new every day, life lessons. We learn a lot by talking to our customers. They are part of our family and if you have been here you will see, I actually work every aspect of the business. I bartend, wait tables, cook, make pizza and do the inventory. If I am not in it, I cannot win it and that is actually our hashtag, #inittowinit.

“We want to stay here for as long as the community will allow us. We have a passion for what we do here; it’s not just smoke and mirrors. And, I believe I speak for most of the staff when I say that when we drive to 1 Dorne Drive we don’t get that feeling of ‘time to go to work.’ It’s more than that, it’s our happy place, and we absolutely love what we do.”

For more information, including updated menus and hours, visit Nikki’s Beach House on Facebook here and its website here.