Auletto’s Caterers in Deptford NJ has been sold to a Wedding/Banquet hall operator from North Jersey. The property is expected to continue operating as it always has, but under a new name… Sapphire Grand Deptford.
And did you know Almonesson Lake has a resort destination history going back at least 130 years!?! Well I cover some of those details also.
I’ve actually known this sale was coming for several months based on liquor license transfer documents, but I admit I am slow to get this online as I’ve been trying to contact the new ownership to get a better understanding of their plans for the Deptford facility.
Considering that the new owner already operates a successful wedding banquet hall in North Jersey (also called Sapphire Grand), I am very, very confident that the Deptford property will remain a wedding and banquet facility.
That being said, I’ve stopped in at the Deptford office several times hoping to catch the new owner, and emailed him… but haven’t heard back. He’s likely very busy becoming acclimated to his new facility.
Local employees state that the business model for Deptford will remain the same as a top wedding and banquet hall facility in South Jersey and that local staff is staying on. Facility upgrades and improvements are expected to come over time.
Government documents show a sale price for the Deptford property of $3.5 million. The Auletto’s property maintains a full liquor license also, and I do not know if the liquor license is included in that price (likely separate).
While I don’t see anything posted on their social media pages regarding the sale, the former owners Jim and Jamie Auletto have posted a letter on the website.
The letter states in summary that the Auletto family has owned the facility since 1968, and have hosted countless weddings and special events for their wonderful customers.
After decades of attending almost every single event, Jim Auletto decided it was time to take a step back and retire.
The Auletto family ownership of the property for 56 years is a wonderful legacy. I’m an old man myself and I remember my Bellmawr Little League banquets being held at Auletto’s in Deptford almost 50 years ago!
Honestly, part of the reason why I wanted to catch up with the new owner is I have not been inside Auletto’s in decades… and I was hoping to get a tour of the place, and be able to take photos and share with readers!
Almonesson Lake – 130+ Years
While the Auletto family took over in the 1960s, the property has been known to the South Jersey and Nationally as Sunset Beach since the 1940s. For a considerable time into the 1970s the property was called Auletto’s Sunset Beach.
But actually going back to the late 1890s the lake and property where a resort destination for the area called “Almonesson Park”. A trolley line ran from Camden to Almonesson and brought in guests particularly from Camden and Philadelphia. Orchestras, dancing and multiple buildings were on the site going back 130 years!
A 1934 Courier-Post advertisement states the property as having “the Largest Pool in South Jersey”, which an Inquirer article later on says was flooded out in the 1940s.
In the 1940s/50s the lake was a destination for residents from many miles who enjoyed the lake, beaches and attractions including a ballroom, roller skating rink, bowling alley, merry-go-round, airplane swings, trains and more!
If you visit the Deptford’s Almonesson Park on Cooper Street (across from Auletto’s) there are remnants of the former Sunset Beach amusement property… including steps, concrete paths and foundation walls!
A 1949 Courier-Post article describes a water carnival where 60,000 people showed up “to see beauty in girls and floats at Sunset Beach”. Consider that is more than the daily attendance of Disney’s Magic Kingdom in Orlando!
Through the 1940s and 50s, the Sunset Beach at Almonesson lake was nationally famous as it’s large Ballroom hosted the Oscar Dumont orchestra, which was broadcasted nationally first to CBS radio stations, and then to over 140 television stations. Millions of people heard weekly “The Oscar Dumont Orchestra, live from the Sunset Beach”
A 1994 Inquirer article stated that (at the time) the original broadcast booth still existed in the ballroom, as did the stage where the orchestra played!
The Almonesson Lake and Sunset beach was a water playground for thousands, offering swimming and beach fun! The property extended across Cooper street where up the hill the bowling alley was located. They area of the Deptford park car parking lot (on the right) is where the Merry-Go-Round was located!
The Ballroom was the main room at the lake, but images online also show that was the Roller Skating Rink.
A 1954 Inquirer article describes the loss of the Sunset Beach Bowling center, lost to a devasting fire.
Sadly the property stopped being used as a swim lake in 1979 when it was determined the water was no longer safe for swimming.
I found myself down a history “rabbit hole” with this property… maybe I’ll get back to piecing together more details.
You can check out “Sunset Beach Park” Facebook group for more details
Links and Location
Sapphire Grand Deptford (Auletto’s Caterers)
1849 Cooper St
Deptford, NJ 08096