Delaware

Aubrey Plaza names her 5 favorite Wilmington spots for the New York Times

Published

1 year ago

October 15, 2024

Aubrey Plaza names her 5 favorite Wilmington spots for the New York Times

Wilmington may not be a secret exactly, now that it’s been home to a sitting U.S. president, but Delaware’s biggest city just got some more star-studded exposure.

Actor and native Wilmingtonian Aubrey Plaza was recently featured in the New York Times for a piece listing her five favorite spots in her hometown.

Aubrey Plaza’s Wilmington, published Friday, details how “the acerbic star of ‘The White Lotus’ and ‘My Old Ass’ is enthusiastic about her often-overshadowed Delaware hometown, which she calls a ‘magical little gem.’”

Those of us here in The First State know Plaza’s love of Delaware firsthand. Her family still lives here and she visits regularly, having been spotted just recently before embarking on her media tour promoting a trio of new projects: “Megalopolis,” “My Old Ass” and “Agatha All Along.”

Over the years she has popped up in Wilmington at fundraisers, dining out, volunteering, attending weddings or just strolling around.

New York Times writer Steven Kurutz reports that Plaza was “an enthusiastically earnest tour guide” when it came to Wilmington, “even though [there is] no theme park, no professional sports teams [and] no famous regional cuisine that demands a pilgrimage.”

So what sites did Plaza highlight for The Gray Lady?

Here’s her list, which exposed our “magical little gem” to the newspaper’s more than 8 million worldwide subscribers.

One of Wilmington’s more beautiful locations earned Plaza’s first shout out, with the star revealing that her family once lived nearby.

“It’s one of the most iconic Wilmington landmarks,” she says of Rockford Tower, “but the park itself is so beautiful.”

The community theater where Plaza got her start shouldn’t be a surprise entry. She name-checks the Lea Boulevard theater often in interviews and returned in 2017 to help celebrate its 85th anniversary fundraiser.

In the entry, which included a New York Times photograph by Neal Santos of WDL production manager Kathy Buterbaugh, Plaza recounts the first time she discovered the theater.

“I just thought, ‘Wow, the guts these kids have to stand up and audition in front of other kids,’ ” she says.

So what spots in Trolley Square got the Plaza seal of approval?

Café Verde, where she likes their pizza slices and gelato, was listed, with Plaza snubbing Café Verdi’s rival across Delaware Avenue Gianni’s Pizza. (Gianni’s did appear, however, in a photograph of the area included with the entry.)

Catherine Rooney’s and Kelly’s Logan House also were noted as popular bars with the younger set, although it was unclear if Plaza herself mentioned them specifically.

“That little square, I’m drawn there every time I go home,” she says.

The famed cobblestone lane that cuts past Brandywine Zoo from Brandywine Park to West 18th Street may be home to the Monkey Hill Time Trial at the annual Wilmington Grand Prix, but Plaza cites more personal memories for the entry.

Kurutz writes: “The very old, very bumpy road was like an amusement-park ride for Ms. Plaza and her cousins, who used to ride their bicycles down it as children.”

“It’s steep, so on a bike, it’s like being on a roller coaster,” she tells him before mentioning the nearby Brandywine Creek. “We used to swim in it. Rope swings from trees. All the kinds of things you read in a book.”

The lone commercial business to get its own listing is a neighborhood bar that can be found on Union Street in Little Italy.

The hang-out spot best known for pairing its Buffalo chicken tenders, “Chicken Nixon” sandwich and “Irish nachos” with cold drinks and locals bar crowd also has been home to Plaza sightings through the years, usually around the holidays when she stops in with friends and family.

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Plaza told the Times she grew up in the city’s Irish Catholic community, spending part of her childhood Irish dancing and that Dead Presidents “was a central meeting spot for my friends and family.”

She adds, “It’s your neighborhood pub. Everybody knows your name there. We would go to the pub. Then we’d have a Yuengling. Maybe two. Maybe three.”

Not mentioned in the article: Dead Presidents is now owned by Plaza’s uncle Brian Raughley, who purchased the beloved watering hole back in 2009.

Have a story idea? Contact Ryan Cormier of Delaware Online/The News Journal at rcormier@delawareonline.com or (302) 324-2863. Follow him on Facebook (@ryancormier) and X (@ryancormier).

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Delaware

Delaware County’s 250th events aim to boost local economy

Published

5 hours ago

January 10, 2026

Press Room

Delaware County’s 250th events aim to boost local economy

DELAWARE COUNTY – Delaware County is gearing up for a year-long celebration of the United States’ 250th anniversary, bringing together community partners for a series of events and programs.

Delaware County’s plans for the semiquincentennial

The Delaware County America 250 Commission hosted a “We the People” party to unveil plans for the upcoming celebrations.

The events aim to educate and connect the local community while drawing visitors from outside Philadelphia to explore the area’s rich history.

What they’re saying:

“Delaware County is not just watching from the sidelines, we are proud to be an essential part of a massive regional and national celebration,” said Christine Reuther, Delaware County Council Vice Chair.

Andrea Silva, director of the Delaware County America 250 Commission, highlighted the diverse themes that will be showcased throughout the year.

Celebrating 250 years of history

The backstory:

Friday’s event celebrated Delaware County’s 250-year history, with different tables reflecting various themes.

Attendees included Colonial Farmstead, Penn’s Woods Winery, and Pathways to Freedom.

The programming will feature over 100 events, including the Battle for Independence: Amazing Race to Brandywine and the Irish America 250 Kick Off on Jan. 14.

The celebrations are expected to leave a lasting legacy, with hopes of boosting the local economy.

“We want to see real economic impact for our local businesses as visitors from around the world come to shop on our main streets and stay in our towns and eat in our restaurants,” said Reuther.

What’s next:

This year’s county event specifics can be found here.

The Source: Information from the Delaware County America 250 Commission.

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Delaware

Wilmington’s first homicide of 2026 claims life of 19-year-old

Published

17 hours ago

January 9, 2026

Press Room

Wilmington’s first homicide of 2026 claims life of 19-year-old

A 19-year-old man was shot dead in Wilmington’s Southbridge neighborhood in the early hours of Jan. 9, police said.

Wilmington officers arriving to the 200 block of S. Claymont St. about 3:30 a.m. found the teen there.

The teen, whom police have not named, was pronounced dead at the scene.

Anyone with information about this shooting should contact Wilmington Police Detective Derek Haines at (302) 576-3656. People can also provide information to Delaware Crime Stoppers at (800) TIP-3333 or delawarecrimestoppers.com.

Violence by the numbers

This is the first homicide reported this year in Delaware, which last year saw a slight drop in all violent killings.

Delaware police reported 52 people being killed in violent crimes in 2025, a drop of nearly 12% when compared with 59 people killed in 2024, according to a Delaware Online/The News Journal database.

While the number of people killed in homicides statewide is down, the number of people killed by gunfire in Delaware was up in 2025 for the third year in a row.

According to the Delaware Online database, 47 were shot dead in Delaware last year. That was one more victim (46) than in 2024, three more (44) than in 2023 and nine more (38) than in 2022.

Despite the increase in gun-related deaths, there were fewer people shot last year in Delaware for the second year in a row.

Police reported 164 people being shot last year in Delaware. The previous year saw 195 people shot and police reported 210 people being shot in 2023.

This was the fewest people shot in Delaware since 2018, when police reported 146 people being shot statewide.

Send tips or story ideas to Esteban Parra at (302) 324-2299 or eparra@delawareonline.com.

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Delaware

MERR responds to dead humpback whale washed up near Bethany Beach

Published

1 day ago

January 9, 2026

Press Room

MERR responds to dead humpback whale washed up near Bethany Beach

A dead humpback whale washed up near Bethany Beach on Jan. 8, according to the nonprofit Marine Education Research and Rehabilitation Institute.

The juvenile male was first seen Jan. 6, floating at sea about 2 miles off the Indian River Inlet, a MERR Facebook post said. The bloated 30-foot whale ultimately beached near a private community in the early afternoon of Jan. 8, the post said.

MERR is attempting to coordinate with the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control to get equipment to move the whale out of the water and onto the beach to perform a necropsy, the post said. Right now, there isn’t enough information to determine a cause of death.

Delaware saw at least three dead whales last year, in the Indian River Bay, at Delaware Seashore State Park and at Pigeon Point. The first two were humpbacks, while the Pigeon Point whale was a fin whale.

A necropsy on the Delaware Seashore whale found blunt force trauma across its back, indicating it may have been struck by a ship, MERR Director Suzanne Thurman said.

Recently, on Jan. 4, a dead fin whale was found on the bow of a ship at the Gloucester Marine Terminal in New Jersey, which is located in the Port of Philadelphia on the Delaware River.

Shannon Marvel McNaught reports on southern Delaware and beyond. Reach her at smcnaught@gannett.com or on Facebook.

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