Hathaway's Owner Looks To Expand

In an effort to appeal to the night crowd has lost in recent years, George Kyrtatas, owner and executive chef of the Cinnaminson mainstay, is looking to expand the restaurant by opening up Sweetwater Bar & Grill in the space the diner’s bar occupies now.

Kyrtatas got the approval of township committee Monday night to forge ahead with a presentation of the expansion to the planning board later this month.

“With my brother and I taking over more [at Hathaway’s], and with the economy the way it is, we wanted to bring a new feel to the restaurant, to bring people back,” Kyrtatas said.

Kyrtatas, also known as “The Little Greek Chef,” is hoping to open a 1000-square-foot outside patio and incorporate about three-quarters of the current dining room of Hathaway’s into a new spot. The rest of the back dining room, as well as the front dining room, will stay in tact as the diner.

He is also planning for a new vestibule in the back—a completely separate entrance for the completely separate restaurant.

“It’s going to be a very fun, very hip atmosphere,” Kyrtatas said. “It’s going to get a full facelift.”

Naturally, Chef Kyrtatas will be planning the menu, which will feature “traditional bar-type foods,” but with a twist, he said. One of Kyrtatas’ items will be grilled chicken wings with a chipotle, honey glaze—a recipe he created for a recent magazine shout-out.

“It’s a spin on wings,” he said.

Kyrtatas also wants to incorporate farm-fresh menu items and use local foods.

Kyrtatas had this idea for quite a few years, he said, but now seemed like the best time to execute it. He needed the go-ahead from since the diner sits on the Route 130 corridor, within Cinnaminson’s redevelopment zone.

Committeeman Anthony Minniti, director of economic development, said he’s “enthusiastic” about the expansion. He, along with Committeeman Ben Young and John Rooney, and Deputy Mayor Don Brauckmann, voted in favor of Kyrtatas’ presentation to move along to the planning board. (Mayor Kathy Fitzpatrick was absent.)

Kyrtatas’ plans fall in line with the recent restaurant expansion of , farther down Route 130. The bar recently opened an outdoor deck and are renovating and expanding their parking lot.

(Stay tuned for a full story and photos on Whistler’s on Cinnaminson Patch this week.)

After everything goes through the appropriate channels, the expansion for Sweetwater Bar & Grill will begin.

“We’ll start construction the day I get approvals,” Kyrtatas said. “We’ll put the shovel in the ground as soon as possible.”