Boarded up for 2 years, one of Delaware's most beloved bars is ready to reopen its doors

When the doors of Nomad Bar first swung open 11 years ago, no one really knew it but the owners.

That's because there was only a lone, generic neon "Open" sign suddenly glowing to let people know something was happening on the mostly abandoned block near Ninth and Orange streets. There was no glitzy ribbon-cutting ceremony with the mayor or invited media.

Over time, it became a home for many: musicians, music fans and all sorts of neighborhood folks from community leaders to the lonely looking for a drink and a little fellowship.

It's the kind of bar people call home. A family-owned spot where the bartenders and owners know your name (and drink order) after only a few visits.

That's why it was a blow to many when Nomad (905 N. Orange St.) closed as coronavirus swept the country in March 2020 and was later boarded after the violent protests that erupted in downtown Wilmington two months later over the murder of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police.

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Nomad was a living room for many; a place where people would especially want to gather during hard times, but these hard times meant isolating at home.

Now, after nearly two years away, owners Dave and Linda Vandever have pried the boards off the bar, restocked the bar and are ready for bands to resurrect the vibe that had patrons off their stools and dancing.

While it's technically a jazz bar, they host everything from jazz, R&B, and soul to rock, ska, and blues.

On Thursday, March 10, Nomad Bar will officially reopen with Wilmington soul favorite Darnell Miller and the Souldaires followed by Wilmington-born jazz man "Big Cat" Tony Smith and his band on Friday with Island Vibe rounding out the weekend on Saturday.

Other shows already booked include Wilmington-based Morphine cover act Cure For Pain on March 19. (There's never a cover charge at Nomad.)

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Miller sums up the bar's aura perfectly.

"Everybody is somebody there and is welcome. It doesn't matter your economic status, if you're Black, white, gay, straight or whatever. When you get all those different people together, magic is bound to happen."

Nomad, a narrow, brick-lined bar reminiscent of clubs in New York's Greenwich Village, is one of the last bars and music venues in the state to reopen following the arrival of coronavirus.

With very little space in between the band and the crowd — and even less between patrons on barstools at the 30-foot bar — COVID-19 made it nearly impossible to open safely early in the pandemic.

Dave Vandever, who has owned the building since 1976, said he originally was preparing to open earlier this year, but the omicron spike delayed those plans.

"There was a continual changing of restrictions and requirements and with us being an intimate place with no patio, we decided to just stay closed until we felt more optimistic," he said of the property, which previously has been everything from a Deerhead Hot Dogs to a Subway sandwich shop.

Vandever, who used to live above the bar with Linda when it first opened, adding to the homespun feel, said the couple has been fielding messages for months from patrons quizzing them about an opening date.

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For Miller, it's not only a return to his favorite local stages. His history runs deeper. He's a regular patron and was there for the 2011 opening on a snowy day. He even wrote a song called "Billy" about the bar's best-known bartender Billy Cerasari.

Following the COVID-19 outbreak, the Floyd protests, and the death of his mother Minnie in December at 78, Nomad's return (and the community that comes with it) couldn't come at a better time.

It was where he went before the shutdown when his mother was ill and on a ventilator fighting for her life with what he now knows was an early case of COVID-19.

"I would play every Wednesday and it was therapy for me to be there in that atmosphere with my brothers and sisters," he said.

Karen Igoe, owner of HoneyBee Kitchen and Market in Wilmington's Trolley Square Shopping Center, regularly went to Nomad to catch bands and is grateful to the Vandevers for coming back.

"They really didn't need to do that. They easily could have walked away," she said. "It's a testament to their patrons because they realized how much it means to the community and music scene."

Other than some lighting enhancements and new drink offerings, Vandever said Nomad regulars will find the club just as they left it.

"Like stepping back in time," he promised. "It will be very much like people remember, right down to Billy."

Have a story idea? Contact Ryan Cormier of The News Journal at [email protected] or (302) 324-2863. Follow him on Facebook (@ryancormierdelawareonline) and Twitter (@ryancormier).

This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: Nomad Bar is back with bands, beers and a reunited community