Family ties behind Olcott's newest restaurant

Thomas Tedesco, Lockport Union-Sun & Journal, N.Y.
·2 min read

Jun. 27—OLCOTT — A local business owner found his newest opportunity close to home.

While getting gas on Route 18 late last year, Brian Keleher looked over at the neighboring building that housed the former Harbor Inn Restaurant, 5764 W. Lake Road, and saw a sign on the roof that said "restaurant for lease."

"So I had seen that sign, and I'm always one to look for an opportunity. It's just my nature," Keheler said.

Over the next several months, Keleher and his girlfriend, Jessica Christy, went through the building and ultimately decided to whip it back into shape as a full-fledged restaurant.

Keleher and Christy opened the doors of Northern Pier restaurant for dining in May.

Both have long-standing experiences and family ties to the restaurant business. They both were longtime employees of another well-known Olcott establishment, Mariner's Landing.

Keleher worked there as the restaurant's head chef for about 15 years, while Christy was a waitress there for about 20 years. Prior to that, they knew each other from attending Newfane schools.

Keheler's late father, Daniel, also had worked in managerial roles for various restaurants in the area including the Wilson Boat House, and he operated several Wendy's locations.

When Keleher and Christy first took a look at the old Harbor Inn building, they knew there would be a lot of work ahead of them.

"We did a walkthrough in September of 2022, just to see if it was something we could do. Essentially it looked like a big storage unit," Keleher said.

"The floors were buckled when we came in came to look at it," Christy added.

Initially Keleher said he had concerns about juggling the responsibilities of running a business and his duties to his family.

"(My father) said, 'You know, it's a great industry, but it's not very family friendly,' which is true. It's tough to run a restaurant and be with your family," he said.

Christy also is familiar with the family dynamics of owning a restaurant. Her mother Cindy owned and operated Cindy's Diner in Barker from 1994 until 2002.

Ultimately it was that sense of family that encouraged Keleher and Christy to undertake the launch of Northern Pier.

"This was his dad's dream, to open his own place, because he always managed big time restaurants," Christy said. "(After) his dad passed away, this came into our laps."