When Will Mooney — Hopewell resident and The Brothers Moon chef and owner — attended culinary school in 1987, he had set the goal of owning his own restaurant, and keeping its doors open, for 15 years.
The Brothers Moon opened on West Broad Street in March 2001, but after dinner service on Sept. 29, the restaurant and bakery that prides itself on “farm-to-table” dining will be closing its doors after more than 17 years.
Mooney and his wife Beth announced the closing via The Brothers Moon Facebook page on Sept. 4.
“The Brothers Moon could not have been what it is without each and every one of you,” the post reads. “We are forever grateful to our customers who have become like family and thank you for your ongoing support throughout the last 17+ years.”
Sitting in one of the dining room’s plush, red leather booths, Mooney reminisced on the past 17 years.
“We’ve touched a lot of folks in wonderful ways,” he said. “We’ve been a major part of the community. We’ve done the [Hopewell] Harvest Fair, and this is going to be the first time we’re not doing it.”
Mooney has been a chef since 1993 and was working at Bon Appetit in Princeton before the future The Brothers Moon property, which housed The Village Market at the time, went up for sale. After calling a few banks, the family bought the property and built the restaurant from the ground up.
Aside from his goal of keeping a restaurant open for 15 years, Mooney also dreamed of owning a bakery, deli and takeout service, as well as a catering business. With The Brothers Moon, he got all four in one.
Four years ago, the family worked to complete a total renovation of the restaurant, with light fixtures and wall decor made out of baking sheets, designed by Beth.
“When we bought the place, we wanted to have a place in our hometown that we didn’t have to commute to, that would feed part of the community and [where] we could raise our kids,” Mooney said.
His children Liam and Aria weren’t raised in the restaurant, but rather “grew up with it,” he said. The two have worked part-time at The Brothers Moon while in high school, often having their birthday parties there.
“There is a lot of family, growing up stuff that happened here that I’m sure we’ll miss,” Mooney said.
Some life changes over the years partially contributed to the idea of closing and selling the restaurant.
Mooney said the family had been discussing selling the property in the early spring, right before his son Liam graduated high school. At that time, Mooney began searching for realtors. Once the property was listed, it only took a few months for a buyer to make an offer.
The new buyer, Mooney said, will continue operating the property as a restaurant under a different name.
Since the announcement of the closing, community residents and regular patrons of The Brothers Moon have expressed well wishes to the Mooney family, calling this time “the end of an era.”
“You have been an amazing member [of] this community,” local resident Heidi Kahme wrote. “Your talents and humor will be sorely missed. Wishing you the best of luck in your new venture.”
Jim Sansone of Sansone’s Farm Market added, “It has been a pleasure to know you, support your restaurant and having you support our family farm. Thanks for so many wonderful memories.”
Mooney is unsure what the future holds after Sept. 29, but he plans to stray away from the fast paced, 70-hour work week he is used to.
“I’m going to go visit my folks out in Colorado, drive across the county, go see some big parks and then come back and figure it out,” he said.
After 17 years, Mooney said he has mixed emotions about leaving The Brothers Moon behind, but he is proud he has exceeded his goals from 1987.
“I’m not really one for setting very many goals; those I just set in passing,” he said. “It’s very gratifying to be able to do this as long as I have.”