With a renewed focus on Providence, Dune Brothers plans new market, restaurant

Dune Brothers, the popular Providence urban clam shack, is making news. Again.

Their pier-to-plate seafood mission will expand in a big way with the opening of a Providence fish market and restaurant in Fox Point. Owners Monica and Nick Gillespie will also sell to restaurants as part of a new wholesale division.

The couple is already poised to open their first raw bar at Dune Brothers at Track 15, the Providence food hall set to open in 2025. But now that will be their third location.

The Gillespies' seasonal seafood shack at 239 Dyer St., opened near the Michael Van Leesten Pedestrian Bridge in 2018. They've been searching for a year-round location for a while.

They aren't ready to share the address for the new business but said renovations will start soon. Their opening target date is July 4 for the newest Dune Brothers. They are keeping that name for all their businesses.

It will have a take-out window for ordering and picking up to-go meals. There will be 18 seats inside, 32 more outside. The fish market sales will be right when you walk in the door, separate from the dining area.

They will build on relationships with local fishermen they have developed in the past six years. "That's the point behind the market, to support all the fisherman with all the connections," said Nick Gillespie.

"You won't find salmon at the market, only locally caught fish."

Nick Gillespie is also happy to have gotten their federal permits for their wholesale company that will sell to restaurants across Rhode Island. A restaurant owner has the best idea about the needs for chefs looking for clams, oysters and local fish, he said. Early delivery and traceability will be key.

Over the years, Nick has gone down to the docks to connect at the source and develop connections, Monica said. "We think it's a game changer," she said.

They've also hired seafood specialist Jose Morales as the manager at the new business. After working at one of the largest companies in the port of New Bedford, Morales made a few more career stops at large fish houses.

"Along the way, I realized my passion was in the smaller artisan arena of commercial fishing boats and connecting the harvester directly to the consumers through local chefs," he said.

Morales had a relationship with Dune Brothers and said the job offer "is like a dream come true." He is thrilled with the opportunity to build and run the new wholesale seafood division and create relationships in Rhode Island.

With the addition of the Fox Point market, the Gillespies are no longer planning to expand to Mashpee Commons on Cape Cod. They've decided to focus all their attention on Providence.

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At the heart of it all, Dunes Brothers is reimagining things for the next generation, said Monica. She talks about one day having a big facility ready for unloading the local catch.

"It's so good for everybody – fishermen, consumers and restaurants," she said.

This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Dune Brothers expanding seafood sales in Providence with new market