Area restaurants, breweries and other establishments throughout Lower Bucks County and Northeast Philadelphia are stepping up to help the suddenly-displaced workers of Dockside Bensalem and Nick’s Roast Beef Woodhaven, both of which abruptly closed early this week.
Owned by Matt Rossi, Dockside opened its doors at 1067 Totem Road — which formerly housed Water’s Edge Gastropub and Lounge — in April 2023, serving as a waterfront eatery and event space. Rossi also owned the Nick’s Roast Beef location at 4501 Woodhaven Road, which he operated after shuttering the Cottman Avenue branch of the sports bar in early 2023.
The dual closure happened suddenly, with a number of workers not knowing they were out of a job until they went on social media Monday morning. As for those who had events booked at Dockside in the coming months, though Rossi said they’ll be refunded, they must now find new venues.
Soon after news broke of the closures, a slew of local businesses, including Broken Goblet Brewing in Bensalem, Sandy’s Beef & Ale in Langhorne, Sweet Lucy’s Smokehouse in Philadelphia and more, invited laid-off workers to reach out about employment opportunities and those with now-canceled events to inquire about getting on the schedule.
Broken Goblet said in a statement, “We can’t promise a guaranteed solution, but we are acutely aware of how it feels to have something happen out of your control, and given our space, we’d like to try and help you find a solution.”
Sandy’s Beef & Ale said, “We know the sudden closures of Nick’s Roast Beef in the Northeast and Dockside in Bensalem have impacted a lot of hardworking people in our community. At Sandy’s, we understand how important this time of year is, and we’re here to help. If you’re looking for a fresh start, we’re hiring for hosts, servers, bartenders, kitchen staff and cooks. Fill out our quick form to let us know a little bit about you — we’d love to see if there’s a spot for you on our team!”
At the time of this writing, no official statement of closure had been posted to either business’ website or social media pages. In fact, Dockside announced on its Instagram only two days prior to the closure that it was booking for holiday parties.
The situation isn’t sitting right with community members.
One commented on Facebook, “A decision like that is not made in one day, [I] feel bad for all the employees and anyone with a deposit for an event at either location. They deserved better.” Another said, “My daughter worked there, no warning at all for any of the employees, worked Sunday and they even posted the schedule for the week.” A third wrote, “There is no scenario where you can’t even call your employees to let them know they no longer have jobs. Letting them show up to work to find the doors locked is cowardly. Hope this guy never opens up another business again.”
Rossi told the Philadelphia Inquirer of the abrupt shutdowns, “I think the easiest answer is just … financially we weren’t able to continue. It’s as simple and cut and dried as that.”
