DELRAY BEACH, Fla. — An iconic restaurant in Delray Beach closed earlier this year. Doc’s All American Restaurant suddenly closed in February after the former owner’s lease ended.
The 1950’s restaurant has been a staple for post-WWII architecture at the corner of Atlantic Avenue and Swinton Avenue.
“Everyone loves Doc's for some reason,” said Price Patton with the Delray Beach Preservation Trust.
Patton said everyone remembers the 6 cent ice cream cones that were sold here in the ’50s, “People my age remember coming here as kids and how excited they were.”
When Doc’s closed there was worry from people in the city that the place would not reopen.
“There were a lot of concerns because everyone thought they would tear it down,” said Patton.
The landowners and developers said Doc’s isn’t going anywhere, and they are fighting to make it a historic site.
“Get it designated and get it on the local register,” said developer Steven Michael.
Michael said they have plans to develop the land right next to Doc’s, but they wanted to seek the historic designation first to reassure everyone that nothing will happen to Doc’s.
“Doc's is a landmark, not just the building but the concept and the idea and location," he said.
The plans for Doc’s include making indoor seating where the old kitchen used to be.
Patton said the move to make Doc’s historic is what everyone was waiting for. “Now they admitted it is historic," he said.
The Delray Beach Historic Preservation Board gave their approval to move forward to get Doc’s on the historic list, now the decision goes to the city commission in October.
"I will be a lot more excited when the city commission signs off on it," Patton said.
