Newburyport's biggest restaurant story of 2026 wasn't an opening. This year, three familiar businesses went before the city's Licensing Commission over a change in ownership. Two of the sales have gone through, and the third has buyers lined up. In each case, the incoming owners described what they would keep before they described what they would add, and every list of additions was short. The one long-running restaurant that closed this year, Oregano Ristorante on Pleasant Street, closed because its owners retired, and no source so far names anyone taking over the space.
Put together, that tells you how the downtown food scene changes from year to year. Places last because someone buys them and plans to keep most of what's there. The changes show up in smaller ways: donuts on more days, cannoli in the case, a new influence on a menu that keeps its name.
Three Handoffs, Built on Continuity
Everything below comes from the public record. Each of these handoffs went through the Newburyport Licensing Commission, which meets monthly at the police station conference room at 4 Green Street.
| Business | Address | What the new owners said stays | What gets added | Status as of early October 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Changing Tides Café | 92 Pleasant St. | Most of the current staff | Longer hours, donuts three days a week, expanded offerings | New license approved in June; Pottses confirmed as owners by July |
| Moe's Italian Sandwiches | 81 Storey Ave. | Seating, layout, menu | Cannoli and other homemade desserts | New license approved August 6 |
| Joy's Nest | 50 Water St., the Tannery | Name, staff, layout, lease | An Asian-fusion influence | License transfer approved August 6; sale not yet confirmed closed |
Changing Tides Added Hours Before It Added Anything Else
The Pleasant Street coffee shop changed hands first. Anne and George Potts bought Changing Tides and its back patio from Kimberly Dillon, and the city's June Licensing Commission minutes said the handoff was expected to be finalized on June 8, 2026. Both new owners spent their careers in corporate finance, strategic planning, and marketing, The Town Common reported in July.
Their first changes added more of what was already there. They lengthened the hours and started serving donuts three days a week, up from Fridays only. They're also making new signs to make better use of the café's spot between Central Congregational Church and the city parking garage. The George Howell coffee and the pastries stayed. So did the back patio, which seats 24 at tables under colorful umbrellas. The staff stayed too, including Charlie Guest and Hannah Pierce, whom the Town Common named.
Anne Potts described taking over a running business this way:
"Taking over an on-going business is like merging into a busy highway."
The June minutes say George Potts intended to keep most of the current staff and to expand the café's offerings to include items such as egg sandwiches, coffee, and nonalcoholic drinks. Egg sandwiches weren't new to the menu, though. In April, before the sale, The Town Common was already calling the café's fried egg sandwiches top sellers. The July story suggests the owners saw their first job as keeping things running smoothly. By then the café was having a strong summer, with customers driving in from around the North Shore in addition to the regular neighborhood crowd.
Storey Avenue and the Tannery Followed the Same Pattern
Two months later, at the August 6 meeting, the same approach came up twice in one evening.
At Moe's Italian Sandwiches on Storey Avenue, the Commission approved a new common victualler license for an ownership change. Angelina Medici, who represented the business at the hearing, said there were no plans to change the seating, the layout, or the menu. The only addition would be cannoli and other homemade desserts. The minutes don't name the incoming owner, so the public record has only her description of what will change, and it's a short list.
The Joy's Nest application at the Tannery was a bigger deal. Attorney Rob Ciampi presented the transfer of the restaurant's alcohol license for prospective owners Mr. Rattanaananampai and Mr. Suwanampai. The minutes describe them as experienced operators who own and manage restaurants in New Hampshire and Maine. Joy's Nest would be their first location in Massachusetts. They told the board they plan to keep the name, the employees, and the overall layout, and to stay under the existing Tannery lease, which property management had already approved. On the menu, they plan to add an Asian-fusion influence.
That fits what's already there. The restaurant's current website describes Joy's Nest as a cozy, Asian-influenced spot for dinner and cocktails. The Commission approved the transfer, but the minutes call the applicants "prospective owners," and no source so far confirms the sale has closed. For now, the menu at 50 Water Street is the one you already know.
In all three cases, the incoming owners named only one or two additions, and each said something about keeping things as they were.
16 Pleasant Street Is Still Waiting
Oregano Ristorante is the counterexample, on the same street as Changing Tides. Oregano was closed by May 14, 2026, after more than 18 years serving Italian and Mediterranean food at 16 Pleasant St.: pizza, pasta, risotto, kebabs, lamb chops, stuffed grape leaves.
The Newburyport Daily News reported that owner Claude Elias and his wife, Laura, were retiring. Nancy Caswell, president of the Chamber of Commerce and owner of Brine on State Street, told the paper that people in the local restaurant community had known for some time that the couple were planning to retire. Speaking for the industry, she was direct about the risk:
"Our industry, by no means, is secure. It's very, very risky."
She also said the couple would be missed for their charitable work with local nonprofits and schools, and that Elias "set the tone for us as restaurant operators to continue with."
No new restaurant for 16 Pleasant St. has turned up in the public record so far. The Licensing Commission minutes from June through September and the October 1 agenda don't mention one, and we found no local news report of a new tenant. If a restaurant goes in, it will almost certainly show up on a Commission agenda before it opens. Elsewhere this year, the Pottses and the new owners at Moe's took over places regulars already knew and kept them running. At Oregano, the owners retired and the restaurant closed.
The One New Name Is Still on Its Way
This year's only true newcomer is a second location rather than a new business. Lowe's Donuts, Nicole Lowe's gluten-free, vegan bakery free of the top nine allergens, announced a Newburyport shop at 226 Merrimac St. The shop plans to sell donuts and other baked goods and to have seating. WhatNow Boston reported that a new coffee and specialty-drink menu is set to launch at both the Haverhill and Newburyport locations. Lowe told the Daily News she was aiming for the last week of September. In a September 2 report, MassLive also gave a late-September target and said the original Haverhill bakery would stay open.
As of early October, no source we found confirms the Merrimac Street shop has opened, and the bakery's website still lists only the Haverhill location. That shop is at 145 S. Main St., open Friday from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. If you're planning a trip around it, check the bakery's own channels before you go.
Starboard Galley's 8 a.m. Patriots Request
The October 1 Licensing Commission agenda included one request that tells you something about how these businesses fit into the week. Starboard Galley asked for a one-time exception to open at 8 a.m. instead of 10 a.m. on Sunday, November 15. The Patriots play in Germany that day, and the game starts on local TV at 9:30 a.m. Donna Greco was listed to represent the restaurant. The agenda doesn't say how the board ruled, so call ahead before you count on an early breakfast with the game.
That monthly meeting is where the Changing Tides license was approved in June, and where the Joy's Nest transfer and Moe's new license were approved in August. The Commission's agendas and minutes are posted on the city's website, and in 2026 they reported each of these changes before word got around town.
Every one of this year's handoffs came down to a buyer deciding what was worth keeping. Pricing a well-loved home works the same way. At Kevin Fruh, we start by identifying what the next owner will want to keep, then price and present your home around it. If you're thinking about a sale of your own, Request Your Complimentary Home Valuation and we'll walk through what makes your home on Pleasant Street, Merrimac Street, or anywhere in Newburyport worth keeping.
