Accolades
Finalist Best Breakfast
Finalist Best Diner
2017
Won Best Breakfast
Won Best Diner
Finalist Best Crab Cakes
2018
Won Best Breakfast
Won Best Diner
Finalist Best Crab Cakes
2019
Won Best Breakfast
Won Best Diner
Finalist Best Casual Dining
2020
Newport Family Restaurant Celebrates 40 Years!
“A staple in the community, Newport Family Restaurant is not only known for its delicious, homecooked meals but also for its proprietor who’s famous for her cooking- Maria Perdikis. The restaurant first opened its doors in 1982 and is proud to celebrate the huge milestone of 40 years in business.
From Humble beginnings, Maria grew up in a small mountain village called Pisterzo, Italy. Working Hard has always been her genetic makeup…”
Won Best Breakfast
Won Best Diner
Finalist Best Crab Cakes
2022
2023
Won Best Breakfast
Finalist Best Diner
Finalist Best Crab Cakes
She no longer puts in 18-hour shifts, but Maria Perdikis still works the grill at her restaurant, a Newport landmark for 35 years.
“The Original Newport Restaurant is celebrating 35 years in Delaware, but it can trace its origins to 1963 and Toronto, Canada. That’s when and where 17-year-old Maria Ricci, her mother, and her brother immigrated from Pisterzo, Italy. Her father had passed away 10 years prior, and Maria became the family breadwinner. She began working two jobs, as a dishwasher and a factory worker making lingerie, for a total of $7 a day…”
Top Rated Breakfast & Family- Friendly Dining
2022
From Google:
“Delicious hidden gem!” “We selected this diner because of the previous reviews. They were spot on. The staff was very welcoming, the service was pleasant and quick. As for the food, that was the best of all.” “Very impressed!” “Love this place!”
Ingrained Italian work ethic takes Maria Perdikis around the world.
“Maria Perdikis grew up dirt-poor in Italy (literally – her house had dirt floors), rode a donkey to the hospital when she had typhoid and ended school in fifth grade to help on the family farm.
Contrast that hardscrabble existence to her world today, the result of a lifetime of hard work and her ingrained Italian work ethic: owner of the Newport Family Restaurant in Delaware, owner of a home, mother, grandmother and fluent speaker of three languages.”