Couple bring restaurant experience to Dockside Deli

The new owners of Port Washington’s Dockside Deli, Mumi and Sara Elezi, are putting in hard work cleaning and redecorating the harborfront restaurant ahead of its reopening in a couple of weeks.

The couple plans to keep much of the deli’s lunch menu — including the beloved Harbormaster sandwich — while building out its breakfast offerings to include diner classics such as crepes, thick pancakes and Chicago-style omelets.

“I am a morning person, so I see breakfast as a huge thing,” Mumi said. “Everyone wakes up feeling crappy. I hope they can come here to have a nice breakfast and get their day started.

“We take it very seriously. For the food to be nice and the restaurant to be clean.”

Elezi is an immigrant from North Macedonia. He had studied law there, but knew for a long time that he wanted to move to the United States for better opportunities.

“(North Macedonia) creates some tough people. Working hard comes naturally,” he said.

In 2006, Elezi moved to Berlin, Wisconsin, to work at his uncle’s restaurant.

“My second day in America, I was washing dishes,” he said.

Elezi met Sara, his wife who has worked her entire life in the restaurant industry, while there.

The couple eventually started a barbecue restaurant in Tillden with a full bar and grill.

“It was a huge project,” Elezi said, noting they hosted weddings and other events with as many as 300 people.

Between the late hours and large events, they burned out, Elezi said. He switched to a career in sales, while Sara started working at another restaurant.

The couple, who currently live in Germantown, learned about the opportunity to take over Dockside Deli through their family trips to Port Washington.

Seeking an active community to visit with their daughter away from Milwaukee, they fell in love with Port, Elezi said.

“The community, the people are great, and the location is breathtaking,” he said. “I’ve lost a lot of hats at the lighthouse.”

Elezi said they plan to move to Port Washington and enroll his daughter in high school. He hopes meet other business owners and become a part of the community.

“We are in it for keeps,” he said.

The couple are replacing all the tables and chairs in the restaurant and deep cleaning the kitchen.

He said they plan to offer fresh soup and sandwiches for lunch, keeping customer’s favorites.

“Why fix something that’s not broken?” he said.