Scott Goss

The News Journal

Powerball tickets won’t be the only thing Delaware residents gobble up this weekend.

Capriotti’s in Newark is planning to give away thousands of 9-inch Bobbies to celebrate the opening of its new location on Friday.

The 27-year-old franchise will close its doors on the west side of the Newark Shopping Center for the last time at 8 p.m. Thursday. Come Friday morning, the sandwich shop will reopen in its new location on the other side of the shopping center parking lot.

The first 100 customers through the door when the new location opens at 10 a.m. Friday will receive a free Bobbie, while the first 100 customers to show up at the same time Saturday morning will get one free Bobbie … every week for a year.

That’s a $403 value per person.

Before you ask, there is no lump sum payout in this contest, but the odds of winning a Bobbie are at least slightly better than hitting the record $700 million Powerball jackpot on Saturday.

“When we offered the same giveaway at our Hockessin location in June, there were people lined up outside the door when we opened,” said David Carpenter, who owns the Newark location and three other Capriotti franchises throughout the state. “When you give something away for free, people tend to come get it.”

The Bobbie, which some call “Thanksgiving on a roll,” is a sub made with oven-roasted turkey, cranberry sauce, homemade stuffing and a hint of mayonnaise. The award-winning sub is arguably the signature sandwich of the multi-state chain founded in Wilmington four decades ago.

The Newark franchise’s move is part of a $10 million renovation of the 61-year-old Newark Shopping Center .

Capriotti’s by Atlantic Realty, a Virginia-based property management company that bought the 16-acre property in 2012.

The work, largely completed last year, included facelifts for some shops and major overhauls for others.

A new cut-through was added in one of the buildings, providing easy access to the Pomeroy and Newark Rail Trail – a hiking and biking thoroughfare from downtown to White Clay Creek State Park.

In April, Newark Natural Foods moved into a renovated anchor store that formerly housed Newark Department Store and opened a new eatery called Café 67 next door.

Restaurant Biz Z Pizza and the barber shop SportsClips also recently moved in to the shopping center, while Churrascaria Saudades Brazilian Steakhouse is slated to open next to Minsters Jewelers in the coming months.

Meanwhile, Newark Cinema Center, which owed thousands in back rent, was evicted in October and the former movie theater remains vacant.

Atlantic Realty President David A. Ross did not return a message seeking comment Thursday. He previously said his company was talking with other prospective theater owners, but left the door open for a possibly demolition and new construction for a national retailer instead.

The updated shopping center, combined with a 220-unit apartment building set to open next door later this year, have been a boon to the east end of Newark’s Main Street, Carpenter said.

“We’re already seeing a lot more people in the shopping center,” he said.

The new location near the entrance to the apartment high rise will give Capriotti’s about 400 additional square feet – space that will allow Newark customers to dine in for the first time.

Carpenter said the sandwich shop, which pulls in about 300 customers a day, also will begin offering outdoor seating this spring.

Contact business reporter Scott Goss at (302) 324-2281, sgoss@delawareonline.com or on Twitter @ScottGossDel.