The owners of the Home Port, who completed their purchase this month of the long-running Menemsha seafood restaurant, plan to make few changes in their first season.

Susan and Robert Nixon bought the restaurant from William and Madeline Holtham on Feb. 10, paying $2.3 million.

The Nixons, who also own the Menemsha and Beach Plum Inns, plan to retain elements from the old restaurant, from menu to staff and hope that customer loyalty for the business, which has been going since 1931, will prevail.

“We want to keep what they’ve had cooking,” said Mrs. Nixon this week. “It’s really going to be tough but we’re counting on loyal clientele.”

A town plan, spearheaded by selectman J.B. Riggs Parker, to purchase the property and demolish the existing restaurant to make way for a park area, a site for additional parking and rest room facilities, and for public access to the waterfront, was rejected by voters at a September special town meeting.

The Holthams had offered to sell the property to the town for $2.3 million.

Separately, the Holthams signed an agreement for the Nixons to buy the property and take over operation of the restaurant should the town vote fail. A purchase and sale agreement went into effect after the meeting.

At the meeting voters raised doubts about the viability of a restaurant in a darkening economic scene and Mr. Nixon himself spoke on the town floor of the high risk nature of the restaurant business.

Today Mrs. Nixon acknowledges that the economic climate is if anything worse. And yet she told the Gazette she intends to stick with the old formula.

“A lot happened [since town meeting],” she said, “It’s scary considering the economic climate now. But it’s exciting too.”

The Nixons plan to open Memorial Day and remain open through Labor Day weekend.

Mrs. Nixon sees pulling power in the restaurant’s long-standing reputation for fresh simple seafood fare.

“We went to get people excited about the Home Port’s long, awesome tradition,” she said.

“A lot of people used to come from around the Island — you know, it’s Thursday night, it’s time for the Home Port. We’re crossing our fingers and toes that that’s the place it still is.”