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August 2010
Group lists 5 most unhealthy fast-food meals for kids
The Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine today, Aug. 31, released what it calls the The Five Most Unhealthful Fast-Food Kids Meals of 2010, firing a PR broadside at huge fast-food chains such as McDonald’s (which had the “worst” kids meal), Wendy’s, Burger King, KFC and A&W.
Some of the committee’s detractors call the PCRM the “food police,” and this organization does like its lists of “worsts,” with news releases just this year entitled “Dietitians Rank Five Worst School Lunches” and “Doctors List Best and Worst Cookbooks of Decade.”
Still, with the most calories, fat, and saturated fat of any meal analyzed, the McDonald’s “Mighty Kids Meal” certainly is, well, mighty. And childhood obesity is a problem that can’t be ignored.
Whatever happened to “Moderation in all things”?
Permalink | Comments (14) | Post your comment | Categories: Food and health, Food fights
TweetSpringboro pizza restaurant to close
SPRINGBORO — The Rosati’s pizza restaurant at 40 E. Central Ave. will close permanently in September, its owners announced this morning, Aug. 31.
For details, check out my colleague Larry Budd’s story about the restaurant closing.
Permalink | | Categories: Restaurant closings
Tweet‘The Taste’ brings more than 40 restaurants to the Fraze on Thursday
We’re only two days until “The Taste,” in which more than 40 restaurants and catering companies will strut their stuff by offering samples of dishes on their menus from 5 to 9 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 2, at Fraze Pavilion. And you can find out all the essentials by clicking on this story headlined ‘The Taste’ offers plenty of ’em at event spotlighting restaurants.
Permalink | | Categories: Local restaurant news
TweetNew Frisch’s opens today in Beavercreek
A new Frisch’s Big Boy restaurant opened this morning, Monday Aug. 30, at 1231 N. Fairfield Road in Beavercreek.
The 5,000-square-foot restaurant, located across from the Beaver-Vu Bowling Alley north of U.S. 35, is the 19th in the Dayton area for the Cincinnati-based restaurant chain. The new Frisch’s employs about 75 people, and has seating capacity of 148, company officials said.
In addition to its carryout menu, the area’s newest Frisch’s includes a “Soup, Salad ‘n Fruit Bar” that converts to a breakfast bar in the mornings.
“Frisch’s Big Boy has been an iconic part of the Miami Valley since the late 1950s when we opened our first drive-in restaurants in the area,” Karen F. Maier, vice president of marketing for Frisch’s, said in a news release. “We’ve changed with the times and had the pleasure of serving generations of Dayton area customers.”
Hours are 7 a.m. to 11 p.m., Sunday through Thursday and 7 a.m. to midnight Friday and Saturday. The restaurant offers dine-in in carry-out, including a drive-through window. For more information, call (937) 429-4939.
Permalink | | Categories: Restaurant openings
TweetNew all-vegan restaurant opens inside Dayton Mall
A vegan restaurant called Loving Hut has opened in the Dayton Mall’s food court.
Loving Hut is part of an international chain of vegan restaurants, but is the first in Ohio, according to Jay Picagli of Hamilton, who owns the local franchise with his wife Jody. There are 42 Loving Hut franchise restaurants in the U.S.
“This gives us a lot of opportunities to promote a plant-based diet,” Picagli said. “And a healthier diet equals a healthier lifestyle.”
The restaurant’s menu includes soups, salads, sandwiches, appetizers, entrees, many of which use soy-based products to stand in for seafood or meat. The most popular items have been Southwest Eggrolls, Coconut-Crusted Veg-a-Shrimp and the Portobello Panini sandwich, along with side dishes such as sweet potato fries and a tropical sweet-spicy slaw, Picagli said.
Loving Hut opened last week and is planning grand opening festivities “in a week or two,” Picagli said.
Plans call for opening a second location just outside the Dayton Mall, near First Watch and a Time Warner Cable office, perhaps in November, Picagli said. That restaurant would offer an expanded menu, he said. And Picagli would like to open a third restaurant in or around the Mall at Fairfield Commons in Beavercreek, which, like the Dayton Mall, is operated by Glimcher Realty.
Picagli acknowledged that the Dayton Mall food court was not his first choice for Loving Hut’s first location. He nearly opened in a location on Brown Street near the University of Dayton, and also looked in the Oregon Historic District and at other locations along Ohio 725. But he noticed the food court, saw the mall’s crowds, approached Glimcher “and here we are,” Picagli said.
The Loving Hut chain of vegan restaurants is affiliated with the Supreme Master Ching Hai International, overseen by Ching Hai, a native of Vietnam who pioneered a meditation method called Quan Yin and who describes herself as “spiritual teacher, artist, and humanitarian.” On the Loving Hut Dayton’s web site, Jody and Jay Picagli say they “have grown to believe in Master Ching Hai’s commitment to a plant-based diet through their burning desire to help save the planet and fight for the ‘Go Green’ cause.”
Loving Hut employs five, and Picagli expects employment to grow to 10 this fall when the second restaurant opens. The restaurant is open from 10:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Saturday, and noon to 6 p.m. Sunday.
Permalink | | Categories: Restaurant openings
TweetRestaurant owner admits tax fraud, pleads guilty to four felony counts
George Argue, co-owner of the now-closed Madison’s Bistro and Truffle’s Catering, pleaded guilty today, Aug. 26, in Montgomery County Common Pleas Court to four felony counts related to theft of more than $200,000 in Ohio sales tax and income tax receipts, according to the Montgomery County Prosecutor’s office.
Pleading guilty to a bill of information before the case was presented to a grand jury, Argue admitted to failing to forward to the state more than $170,000 in sales taxes collected from restaurant customers, and failing to forward to the state nearly $42,000 in income taxes withheld from employees’ paychecks, between 2005 and 2009, the prosecutor’s office said.
The charges resulted from an Ohio Department of Taxation investigation.
Argue pleaded guilty to:
— aggravated theft of sales tax in excess of $100,000, a third-degree felony;
— aggravated theft of income tax in excess of $5,000, a fourth-degree felony;
— failure to remit sales tax, a fourth-degree felony; and
— failure to remit income tax, a fifth-degree felony.
The four felony counts carry a maximum penalty of nine years in prison and a $22,500 fine. Sentencing has been set for Oct. 5 in the courtroom of Judge Frances E. McGee.
Greg Flannagan, spokesman for the prosecutor’s office, said prosecutors and tax department officials will ask the judge to include at least some prison time as part of the sentence, as well as full restitution to the state for the sales tax and to the employees for the income tax.
Argue’s attorney, Dave Williamson, could not be reached for comment this afternoon, Aug. 26. Argue is free on his own recognizance.
In April, Argue pleaded guilty in Kettering Municipal Court to keeping a place where alcohol was sold illegally and was fined $500. The charge followed a Jan. 14, 2010 raid by agents of the Ohio Department of Public Safety’s Ohio Investigative Unit who were acting on a tip that Madison’s Bistro was serving alcohol without a license. The restaurant’s license to serve alcohol was revoked a year earlier, on Jan. 12, 2009. At that time, state officials said the non-renewal resulted from the restaurant not forwarding to the state tax money it had collected.
Madison’s did not reopen following the raid.
Permalink | | Categories: Local restaurant news
TweetRue Dumaine scores more national attention
Rue Dumaine has gotten another shot of love from a national food-and-dining magazine.
In its September 2010 issue, Bon Appetiit magazine listed Rue Dumaine in its story on “The Country’s Best Daily Specials”. The article focuses primarily on seven other restaurants across the country, but includes Rue Dumaine in a category it called “10 More Spots for Fantastic Daily Specials.” Rue Dumaine is the only southwest Ohio restaurant mentioned in the piece.
The magazine is mute on which Rue Dumaine daily specials caught Bon Appetit’s eye, but we can tell you that tomorrow night, Thursday Aug. 26, the restaurant is scheduled to serve up a griddled chicken burger with oven roasted tomatoes and Gruyere, served with rosemary-black pepper French fries for $14 (both the chicken and tomatoes sourced locally); on Friday, it’s grilled herbs de Provence-marinated duck breast, creamy eggplant gratin, wilted kale and a relish of oven roasted tomatoes and Nicoise olives for $24 (vegetables locally sourced), and on Saturday, a pan-seared prime ribeye with blue cheese-thyme crumble, thick tomato slices, and Blue Lake green beans for $27, with the tomatoes and beans sourced locally, according to the Rue Dumaine menu’s weekly specials link.
Earlier this year, Rue Dumaine co-owner and executive chef Anne Kearney earned a spot on The 2010 SAVEUR magazine Top 100 List put out by Saveur magazine.
Permalink | | Categories: Local restaurant news
TweetNew deli comes to Cross Pointe Center
The Culinary Company in Centerville has added a deli.
The store at 101 E. Alex-Bell Road, Suite 132, in the Cross Pointe shopping center sells cookware and kitchen equipment, and also has an extensive craft beer selection and sells wines at retail.
Jeff Aylor, Culinary Company’s owner, said adding food service has been part of his business plan.
“We’ve said all along that we’re a culinary store, not a kitchen store,” Aylor said. “We have chefs in this store, so why are we not preparing food? This will give them a chance to show their creativity.”
The deli opened quietly this spring. “We started small and wanted to refine the concept,” Aylor said.
The deli’s “signature sandwiches” include a club, with turkey, Swiss cheese and bacon; French onion and London port roast beef, with caramelized onions and smoked Gouda cheese; a “Blazing Buffalo Chicken sandwich; and a grilled portobello mushroom sandwich, each $7.95. The deli also offers “premium items” such as “Mel’s Crab Cakes” ($5.95 cooked, $4.95 to take home and cook) and “Ninny’s Coconut Cake” ($3.95 per slice).
Wine and beer is available, and Aylor said he intends to add a draft beer cooler soon that will allow him to offer eight to 10 draft beers on tap.
The deli seats 20. Hours are noon to 5 p.m. Monday through Saturday. For more information, call (937) 433-4335.
Permalink | | Categories: Restaurant openings
TweetDowntown Dayton sandwich shop closes
The Roly Poly sandwich shop at 33 N. Main St. has closed after five years of serving wraps in downtown Dayton.
The sandwich shop’s franchise owner, David Guehl of Vandalia, said in a news release that Citywide Development, which owned and developed the former Elder Beerman department store building before selling it it a New York-based real estate firm, “misrepresented economic conditions and development plans” to induce Guehl into signing a lease for his Roly Poly sandwich shop. A real estate tax dispute and legal fees as a result of a lawsuit that Guehl filed against Citywide in early 2009, which was later withdrawn, drained Guehl’s financial resources, so that he “is now forced to close down” the business, Guehl wrote.
Steve Budd, president of Citywide Development, said Citywide officials had no way of foreseeing the recession or the departure from downtown Dayton of Mead Westvaco and Reynolds + Reynolds jobs, among others. And Budd noted that Guehl withdrew the civil lawsuit prior to a final judgment in the case. The withdrawal means Guehl can reinstate the lawsuit.
Guehl, who could not be reached for comment beyond his news release, said the loss of jobs was painful. The sandwich shop’s employees “have worked loyally and diligently from the opening day” and “will be assets to their next employers.”
Permalink | | Categories: Restaurant closings
TweetNew restaurant to open in Centerville
CENTERVILLE — A new restaurant named House of Kabab is scheduled to open next month at 298 N. Main St. (Ohio 48) in the former Johnny’s Slice of New York Pizzeria location.
The restaurant will offer several different kinds of kebab sandwiches and platters, along with vegetarian dishes and daily specials, for both lunch and dinner, according to the restaurant’s owner, George Ephrem. The menu will be available for dine-in or carryout.
House of Kabab will seat about 50, and there are plans to construct a patio later this year that will add outdoor seating, Ephrem said. The restaurant will employ four or five people, he said.
Ephrem, of Beavercreek, said he liked the former Johnny’s location and the area surrounding it. The site has been vacant since Johnny’s relocated earlier this year.
“I think when I offer good-quality food here, people will stop in, and we’ll have a good chance for success,” Ephrem said.
The House of Kabab will be open seven days a week for lunch and dinner: 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Friday and Saturday, and 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Sunday.
Permalink | | Categories: Restaurant openings
TweetSubscribers to get refunds after Farm2Fork Fresh CSA deliveries suspended
The Dayton-based community supported agriculture program known as Farm 2 Fork Fresh has suspended deliveries of its fruits and vegetables to subscribers who picked up the produce at Dorothy Lane Market stores.
Calvin Mayne, whose family owns DLM, said store officials “learned rather suddenly a few days ago that our vendor was ceasing operations and would no longer deliver the CSA boxes.
“Since our customers picked up the CSA boxes at our stores, we (DLM) felt obliged to reimburse those customers who had pre-paid the vendor for the program. We have contacted all of these customers directly, and they are aware of how they will be reimbursed by Dorothy Lane Market.”
The suspension of deliveries will affect 117 people who had signed up for the CSA through Dorothy Lane Market, Mayne said. Mayne said DLM officials and Farm 2 Fork Fresh officials “worked out the situation amicably to get our customers refunded.”
Howard Solganik, executive director of Farm 2 Fork Fresh, said today, Aug. 20 that the program was part of a non-profit corporation and stumbled because of lack of outside funding.
“It was our expectation that we would have grants, gifts and or other funding in place by now,” Solganik said. “The cost of the membership and weekly fees did not cover the cost of operations. It was our goal to become sustainable operationally but we needed additional support for that to happen. It hasn’t.
“We are not finished yet and we continue to look for funding. If and when that takes place, we will offer a choice of options to fulfill the balance due to the 30 customers who have not received refunds. All of the customesr who picked up through Dorothy Lane Market received full refunds. We also have a few farmers that are owed money. I plan to work to see that these funds are paid.”
Solganik said he was “naive about the timing on such a project” but is optimistic about the future.
Permalink | | Categories: Local food news
TweetPlanet Smoothie to open near UD
Planet Smoothie will open a location at 1105 Brown St. near the University of Dayton’s campus, franchise owner Rhonda Everitt said this morning, Aug. 19.
Everitt said she is “shooting for November” to open her third Planet Smoothie, this one in the former Dairy Queen location on Brown Street. Construction could push back the opening to January, she said.
Everitt operates Planet Smoothie locations at 430 Miamisburg-Centerville Road in Washington Twp., and on Cox Lane in West Chester.
The new store will hire about eight employees, Everitt said.
Permalink | | Categories: Restaurant openings
TweetNew BBQ restaurant in Kettering will employ 15 to 20
OinkADoodleMoo Smoky BBQ, which we mentioned a couple of weeks ago was eyeing a prominent spot in Kettering for expansion, has signed a lease and started renovations on the former Chipotle restaurant site at 3910 Far Hills Ave. in Kettering, OinkADoodleMoo’s founder and president, Mark Peebles, said this morning, Aug. 19.
Peebles said the new OinkADoodleMoo could open as early as October. It will employ an estimated 15 to 20 people, he said.
OinkADoodleMoo opened its flagship Englewood BBQ restaurant in fall 2009 and earlier this year added a lunch trailer at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base’s Area B.
In addition to its BBQ menu that includes pulled pork, ribs, chicken, and beef brisket, the new Kettering restaurant will serve a custom line of JD’s Old Fashioned Frozen Custard products, including frozen custard pies, Peebles said.
Permalink | | Categories: Local restaurant news
TweetGrand opening today for Oregon District restaurant
The Las Americas Caribbean Cuisine restaurant at 524 E. Fifth St. in the Oregon Historic District that we first told you about in May will host a grand opening at 10:30 a.m. today, Wednesday Aug. 18.
Dayton Mayor Gary Leitzell, Oregon District Business Association President Michael Martin and restaurant co-owners Delores Quinones and Roxanne Torres are scheduled to speak at the grand opening. Quinones operated the Las Americas booth at the PNC 2nd Street Market prior to moving the business to the former Blue Moon restaurant location. Torres founded and ran a catering and delivery business in Puerto Rico prior to coming to Ohio.
Guests at the open house can sample items from the Las Americas Caribbean Cuisine menu. Items to be given away include cooking spices, salsas, Maracas, and souvenirs from Puerto Rico, according to a news release from the Oregon Arts District.
Las Americas Caribbean Cuisine is open from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday and offers catering. For more information, call (937) 286-8007.
Permalink | | Categories: Restaurant openings
TweetNew Italian restaurant coming to The Greene
An Italian-themed restaurant to be called Joya’s Bistro is coming to The Greene in Beavercreek.
Mike Duffey, spokesman for The Greene, confirmed today, Aug. 18 that Joya’s Bistro has signed a lease to occupy a 3,100-square-foot retail space at 81 Magnolia Lane on the eastern end of the shopping-entertainment-residential complex, near the Von Maur department store.
The new restaurant is scheduled to open in mid-fall, Duffey said.
“We’re excited that they’re coming,” Duffey said. “We think Joya’s Bistro will fill a niche that is currently unfilled at The Greene.”
Duffey referred further questions to Joya’s Bistro’s owners. The restaurant is co-owned by Greg Januleski and Phil Marino.
But Joya’s Bistro’s owners are poised to give Dayton-area diners a sneak peek to their menu in the coming weeks. They have signed up to provide samples of their food at two upcoming events: the Miami Valley Restaurant Association’s Taste of Miami Valley, and the Kettering-Moraine-Oakwood Chamber of Commerce’s event known as The Taste.
The MVRA’s web site says Joya’s Bistro will be serving samples of three dishes at the Taste of Miami Valley event: Sausage and peppers, Spaghetti and Meatballs and Meatball Sliders.
Permalink | | Categories: Local restaurant news
TweetRibbon-cutting tomorrow at Moraine caterer/market
MORAINE — A ribbon-cutting and open house will be held tomorrow, Wednesday Aug. 18, at the newly expanded Bellyfire Catering at 2462 Dryden Road.
The event marks the addition of Bellyfire Markeplace to the company’s catering operations. The marketplace offers take-home party platters that include salads, appetizers, entrees, desserts, or daily specials. Bellyfire acquired the building in Moraine to accommodate its expanding business, according to a news release from the three-year-old company.
The ribbon-cutting by Moraine Mayor Bob Rosencrans is scheduled for 11 a.m. The open house extends through the afternoon, when guests can purchase food and drink under outdoor tents, enjoy music by Jamre Entertainment, tour Bellyfire catering facilities including the showroom outfitted by Prime Time Party Rental, and watch ice carving demonstration by Iceman Ramon Rodriguez.
A VIP reception is scheduled for 5 p.m. inside the catering company. Nicky Illiopolis from the Jazz Forward 91.3-FM WYSO show will be providing live entertainment. For VIP tickets or for more information, contact Bellyfire Catering at 937-479-8879.
Bellyfire Catering opened in 2007 by chef/owner Jeff Blumer and offers a variety of off-premise catering services.
Permalink | | Categories: Local restaurant news
TweetFive Guys, Wendy’s, McDonald’s, Panera among winners in Zagat survey
Five Guys Burgers & Fries, Wendy’s, McDonald’s and Panera were among the many winners in the 2010 Zagat Fast Food Survey.
The results are based on the opinions and experiences of 6,518 “surveyors.” There are so many categories in the Zagat survey — and they’re broken down between various sizes of both fast-food chains and full-service chains — that many companies can claim victory somewhere.
Check out the Zagat press release here and the results as interpreted by MSNBC here.
According to Zagat’s summary, Five Guys took home the trophy for the best burger in the land, while Wendy’s captured Top Overall and Top Food honors among mega chains (more than 5,000 U.S. locations). McDonald’s won for Best French Fries (for the third straight survey), Best Drive-Thru, Best Value Menu and Best Breakfast Sandwiches, but the Golden Arches folks came in second in the Most Popular mega-chain contest to Subway, which was also named No. 1 for Healthy Options among mega chains. Panera was declared the “most popular” chain in the second-largest category of restaurant chains, those up to 5,000 units.
What do you think of the Zagat reviewers’ conclusions? Do they align with your experiences?
Permalink | Comments (5) | Post your comment | Categories: Restaurant industry news
Tweet280-seat restaurant opens in Springboro
SPRINGBORO — The El Pueblo and Sammy’s Gourmet Burgers & Beers that we told you about back in May has opened its doors in the former Encore restaurant location at 776 N. Main S. (Ohio 741) near Dorothy Lane Market’s Springboro store.
El Pueblo Mexican restaurant occupies the larger section of the restaurant, with Sammy’s, with more of a sports-bar feel, fills out the smaller southern portion. Customers can order from either menu no matter where they sit in the restaurant-sports bar.
Total seating is 280. The restaurant opened with about 40 employees.
The building that once housed Encore has sat unused for two years. The new restaurant’s owner is Samuel Flores, who operates El Pueblo Mexican restaurant and Sammy’s Gourmet Burgers & Beers, both in Blue Ash in suburban Cincinnati.
El Pueblo and Sammy’s is open daily. Hours are 11 a.m. to midnight Monday through Saturday, and 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sundays.
For more information, call (937) 550-0430.
Permalink | | Categories: Restaurant openings
TweetDLM bagger headed to Vegas after winning ‘Ohio’s Best’ contest
Tom Bergman, an employee of Dorothy Lane Market’s Oakwood store, has won the title of ‘Ohio’s Best Bagger’ in an Ohio Grocers Association contest held earlier this week.
Bergman beat out 31 other contestants in the competition and won $1,100 and a trip to Las Vegas to compete in a national grocery-bagging contest next February, the grocers association said.
And he did it on “enemy turf”: a Kroger Marketplace in Lewis Center, Ohio. Dorothy Lane Market’s three stores in Oakwood, Washington Twp. and Springboro compete with Kroger stores in or around those markets for family grocery dollars.
DLM’s Calvin Mayne said Bergman has worked at Dorothy Lane Market’s Oakwood store since July 2008. The 2010 graduate of Fairmont High School is headed to Wright State University this fall, Mayne said.
Permalink | | Categories: Grocery industry news, Just for Fun
TweetMan fakes seizures to skip out on restaurant bills
Good heavens to Betsy, check out this story from WBAL-TV’s web site headlined “Man Sentenced For Faking Seizures At Restaurants”.
And in particular, look at how much the man had to drink at the dinners he skipped out on. Wow.
If you own or manage a restaurant, have you ever suspected anyone of doing this?
Permalink | Comments (2) | Post your comment | Categories: Something different
TweetFond memories of Anticoli’s as closing looms
As the closing date for Caffe Anticoli fast approaches — Sunday, Aug. 15 is the restaurant’s last day at its current location in Clayton — customers of the restaurant and especially of its predecessor, Anticoli’s on Salem Avenue, are sharing many fond memories.
The following comes from readers who emailed me after yesterday’s story was posted on our web site, or from the memory book that is inside Caffe Anticoli’s front entrance that customers are signing:
“We were among the many newlyweds who held our wedding breakfast at Anticoli’s in the late ’50s and early ’60s. We also went there quite often with my wife’s parents for other occasions. Gloria and Tony were always very gracious hosts. We have fond memories of the warmth of the Anticoli family. We were married on May 3, 1958. In the past few years we have eaten at Caffe Anticoli for more special occasions celebrating ‘long-ago’ grade school friendships. We hope that the Anticolis do find a new location so that we may once more dine with the Anticoli family.” — Jerome Harting and Barbara (Wyen) Harting, Farmersville
“On Dec. 18, 1958, we became engaged at the Salem Avenue Anticoli’s. We’ve now been married 51 years. So many memories and good times … ” — Carol and Phil Pratt
“Back in 1965 my fifth-grade teacher (Ms. Earl) as Gettysburg Elementary school took a group of us to Anticoli’s for getting good grades. I still remember going to the Salem Avenue location and thinking what a beautiful place it was and how good the food was. Back then, fifth graders didn’t have a lot of money, and usually their parent’s didn’t, either. Getting to go to a restaurant as nice as Anticolis was one of my most vivid memories of my grade-school days.” — Shawn (Wallace) Foley, Clearcreek Twp.
“I’ll miss the great food and the friendly staff. My memories include meeting and talking about old times with my dear friends from Shilohview Elementary School. This was our favorite meeting place.” — Georgette Coleman
“Best wishes to Leo and Gloria! Ask Leo if he remembers that motorcycle ride he received in the parking lot of the Salem Avenue restaurant when I was working as a bus boy for you folks in the late 1950s.” — Richard Zacharias
“Gloria took me back in the kitchen for me to make my own sundae once when I was very young. What wonderful food and memories! There was a bartender, Dee who always made a Shirley Temple for me, and I always ordered the ravioli … .” — Greg Bane, Vandalia
“I grew up in the Northmont area and first enjoyed Anticoli’s as a high school student before my first prom. I went with a young man for Valentine’s day in 1998, after we had dated for 3 weeks. I had Calamari for the first time, before I found out what it was. It was very romantic. In December of 2001 that young man and I had our rehearsal dinner at Cafe Anticoli’s. In September of 2007, the (less young) man planned my 30th birthday party there. In April of this year, we celebrated my mother’s 65th birthday there. Two weeks ago, we took our 6- and 3-year-old sons, wanting to share that special place with them. Anticoli’s/Caffe Anticoli has always been a SPECIAL place. It was welcoming, and even as a teenager, the service we have received has been well beyond courteous and friendly. They made a customer for life out of me and I am saddened by the loss of their establishment in the North Dayton community.” — Debbie Knudsen
Feel free to click on “post your comment” and share your memory of Anticoli’s or Caffe Anticoli.
Permalink | Comments (11) | Post your comment | Categories: Restaurant closings
TweetCaffe Anticoli to close for good this weekend, but stay tuned, owners say
CLAYTON — Caffe Anticoli, which traces its Dayton-area family-owned restaurant history to 1931, will close the doors of its current location at 8268 North Main St. permanently at the end of business Sunday, Aug. 15.
But it won’t go quietly.
“Our final weekend Friday and Saturday (Aug. 13-14) will feature Al Colombo, the violinist who was with us for many years at the Salem Avenue location,” restaurant owners Leo and his son Chris Anticoli said in an email.
Although there is no firm deal in place to open a new restaurant, Chris Anticoli “is looking into a location to continue the tradition but on a more informal scale, somewhere between an Italian Taverna and a casual restaurant,” the Anticolis said. “We both feel that an atmosphere of informality, casual dress,and moderate prices combined with the Anticoli quality of food and service is necessary for success in today’s market and that will be the goal of any new venture.”
Leo Anticoli said back in March that he was not renewing his lease and would be looking for a new home for the restaurant.
Anticoli’s/Caffe Anticoli has been in business in the Dayton area for eight decades, in three different locations: from 1931 to 1951, on East Fifth Street in the St. Anne’s Hill District of Dayton; 1951 to 2000 on Salem Avenue in north Dayton; and from 2000 to 2010 at its current location in Clayton.
Caffe Anticoli’s predecessor, Anticoli’s, emerged as a high-profile destination restaurant in the 1960s and ’70s. Leo, his brother Tony, and sister Gloria led the family effort, with Leo overseeing the kitchen and Gloria and Tony in the “front of the house.” Tony retired in 1995 and died in 2005, while Gloria stepped away in 1999.
The Anticolis believe theirs is the longest-established, continually operating restaurant family in the Miami Valley. Michael Anticoli, Leo’s son and Chris’s brother, operates La Piazza in Troy as well as La Piazza New Bremen.
For its final days, Caffe Anticoli will be open from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. through Saturday, and on its final day of business on Sunday, it will be open 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. For more information, call (937) 890-0300.
If you have memories of Caffe Anticoli or Anticoli’s, send an email to mfisher@coxohio.com .
Permalink | | Categories: Local restaurant news, Restaurant closings
TweetFresh Express issues recall of one salad product because of possible bacterial contamination
Fresh Express late Tuesday, Aug. 10 issued a voluntary recall of 2,825 cases of its “Veggie Lovers Salad” for possible Listeria bacterial contamination, according to the Ohio Department of Agriculture.
Salinas, California-based Fresh Express distributed the Veggie Lovers Salad in Ohio and 12 other states, but company officials could not be reached late Tuesday to determine which Dayton-area stores sold the product.
Consumers were advised to check their refrigerators for Fresh Express Veggie Lovers Salad with a product code of I208 and a Use-By date of Aug. 10, 2010, and to immediately discard the salad if they have it.
No illnesses have been reported in relation to the recall, but a random sample test by the Ohio Department of Agriculture showed the presence of Listeria bacteria in one bag of the salad. No other Fresh Express salads are included in the recall, according to a news release distributed by the agriculture department.
The news release said Fresh Express voluntarily recalled the bags of salad “out of an abundance of caution” due to the potential health risk from the bacteria with a full name of Listeria monocytogenes.
The Listeria bacteria can cause food-borne illness in those who consume a food item contaminated with it. Symptoms of infection can include fever, muscle aches and gastrointestinal symptoms such as nausea or diarrhea, the Ohio Department of Agriculture said.
The illness primarily impacts pregnant women and adults with weakened immune systems. Most healthy adults and children rarely become seriously ill, the agriculture department said.
The Fresh Express Veggie Lovers Salad is distributed in Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, Kentucky, Missouri, Illinois, Wisconsin, Maryland, New York, Kansas, Pennsylvania and New Jersey.
Retailers and consumers with questions are instructed to call the Fresh Express Consumer Response Center at (800) 242-5472 between 8 a.m. and 11 p.m.
Permalink | | Categories: Food and health
TweetTipp restaurant’s pulled pork captures 1st place again
For the third consecutive year, Hickory River Smokehouse in Tipp City has won first prize at the Ohio State Fair’s “Pork Rib-off competition” for its pulled pork.
The restaurant’s pulled pork emerged victorious against eight competitors during the Aug. 2 taste-off and earned Hickory River owners Brad and Krista Bowman a $1,000 top prize, a silver plate, and a banner to display.
The Bowmans had never entered a food competition until the 2008 Ohio State Fair, where they also won the pulled-pork competition, and returned in 2009 to successfully defend their title in the competition.
In a news release, the Bowmans said they plan to return in 2011 to defend their crown.
Hickory River is located off I-75 at 135 S. Garber Rd. in Tipp City. For more information, call (937) 669-2271.
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TweetPizza for 1965 prices at Marion’s
Dayton-based pizza chain Marion’s Piazza is celebrating its 45th anniversary today — Monday, Aug. 9 — by offering its 1965 menu at 1965 prices.
All Marion’s Piazza locations will be open from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. today, or until their supply of food is exhausted.
There are some important restrictions to know before you go: There is a limit of one major menu item (such as one pizza, or one sandwich, or one spaghetti dinner) per customer. Advance phone orders will not be taken, nor will seating reservations. Orders for half-baked pizzas or uncooked dinners will be not accepted.
And based on my experience last year with this promotion, don’t think you’re going to “swing by” and spend a few minutes picking up an incredible bargain pizza. The lines vary between long and VERY long depending on the time you arrive. But last year there was a great vibe in the line— a lot of people striking up conversations with neighbors they’d never met before. It was quite an experience. And where else are you going to find a large pepperoni pizza for $1.90?
Here are a few other examples of the deals:
— Small cheese pizza: 80 cents
— Large deluxe pizza: $2.50
— Sandwich: 50 cents for half, $1 for whole
— Spaghetti with sauce: 75 cents, $1 with meatballs
So remember the restrictions, be patient, and score a bargain that has been 45 years in the making …
Permalink | | Categories: Local restaurant news, Restaurant promotions/giveaways
TweetSloopy’s morphing into tiki bar
DAYTON — Sloopy’s bar at 613 E. Fifh St. at Wayne Avenue in Dayton’s Oregon Historic District is morphing into “Bar Tiki.”
The exterior “Sloopy’s” signs had already been removed and were resting on the sidewalk this afternoon, Aug. 2, and workers using thatched bamboo were busy transforming the interior into a new bar with a Polynesian theme.
“It’s going to look like Gilligan’s Island in here when we’re done,” said Jeff Edwards, the bar’s general manager.
The bar will be closed for most of this week and will reopen as Bar Tiki perhaps as early as Thursday, Aug. 5, at 3 p.m., serving island- and tropical-themed beers and authentic rum drinks mixed with fresh fruit juices, Edwards said. The Thursday opening is a target date, the manager said.
Business at Sloopy’s “was not up to par,” Edwards said. One of the bar’s owners, Dave Camplin, suggested the tiki-bar theme. Edwards said the new concept will help build up both Dayton and the Oregon District.
“We’re going to attract a more mature crowd,” Edwards said. “We’re putting the old dance club to rest … . The nightclub scene is going to be gone.”
The bar will host live music — probably acoustic acts during the week, and full bands on Saturdays, Edwards said.
After the reopening, the bar’s hours will be 3 p.m. to 2 a.m. Tuesday through Friday, and 6 p.m. to 2 a.m. Saturday. The bar will be closed Sunday and Monday, though that may change in the future, the general manager said.
Permalink | Comments (40) | Post your comment | Categories: Local restaurant news, Something different
TweetBBQ restaurant expands, looks to add 3rd location in Kettering
ENGLEWOOD — The OinkADoodleMoo Smoky BBQ restaurant at 322 Union Road is poised to unveil an addition that will nearly double the seating in the restaurant, and is exploring adding a third location in Kettering.
The restaurant that specializes in ribs, pulled pork, BBQ chicken and beef brisket has a target date of Aug. 14 to open its new dining area, which will expand the restaurant’s indoor seating from 30 to nearly 60, said Mark Peebles, OinkADoodleMoo’s president and founder. A grand-opening celebration will be planned for the following week, Peebles said.
The restaurant opened a second location earlier this year, selling BBQ from a trailer at lunchtime at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base’s Area B.
And a third location, the first OinkADoodleMoo franchise, may be on the way. Peebles said he and a potential franchise owner-operator are exploring the possibility of leasing the former Chipotle restaurant at 3910 Far Hills Ave. just north of Stroop Road and opening an OinkADoodleMoo in the Kettering location. The building has been vacant since September 2009, when Chipotle moved to a newly constructed restaurant at 4329 Far Hills Ave.
No lease has been signed, Peebles said.
The expansion of the Englewood restaurant will likely result in the hiring of an additional three or four employees, Peebles said. The Union Road OinkADoodleMoo employs 10 currently.
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TweetRestaurant owners’ outlook gloomier
The National Restaurant Association’s Restaurant Performance Index dropped in June, primarily because restaurant owners’ and managers’ outlook for the future darkened a bit.
Take a look at this Nation’s Restaurant News piece that explores the restaurant organization’s monthly survey.
Perhaps if every restaurant market in the country would hold a smashing Restaurant Week promotion like Dayton did last week, the owners wouldn’t be so darn pessimistic.
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TweetMeadowlark restaurant exploring new location
The Meadowlark restaurant at 2094 Miamisburg-Centerville Road is considering a relocation or possible second location, according to its chef-owner, Elizabeth Wiley.
The restaurant’s current location in a strip shopping center seats about 55 people and has no bar or other place where diners can wait if a table isn’t ready — a relatively frequent occurrence at the busy restaurant. Wiley said she also wants a facility that will allow her to better accommodate large parties.
One former restaurant site that Wiley is exploring: the former Madison’s Bistro at 5531 Far Hills Ave., about five miles from the current location and also in Washington Twp. No lease has been signed, but Wiley said she is gathering information about the site, which has been vacant since Madison’s Bistro closed in January 2010.
Wiley said she may continue to operate a restaurant at the current location even if Meadowlark relocates.
Meadowlark opened in 2004.
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