With a long history of serving Italian fare in Dayton, maybe it’s time for Caffe Anticoli [1] to come back to their roots on E. Fifth Street:
Next year, 2011, will mark the 80th consecutive year Anticoli’s/Caffe Anticoli has been in business in the Dayton area, but Anticoli noted that the eight decades included 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.
via Caffe Anticoli looking for new home | Taste: Dayton food and restaurants [2].
There are at least two open restaurant locations on E. Fifth Street- the former Blue Moon/John Henry’s and the former Chin’s in the Parking Garage [3]. Other options include the former Grayhound station location or the Gem City Records space. Fifth Street would love to have you back. Sometimes going back to your roots is the best thing a well established brand can do.
I am sure Franco would love that.
^Got it before I did. Two nice Italian restaurants within two blocks of each other in a town this size wouldn’t work.
Invite Mama Disalvos and Tronis and whatever other place to join Franco, Sp Warehouse, and now Cafe Anticoli. Even an Olive Garden and Carrabbas would be welcome. Brio and Bravo, and Fazolis as well. Why not? Then we could see who is truely best at their price point and see who wins. I vote for………….
Fake Italian, Real Fast……. Dayton Ohio.
That area along E Third and E Fifth, east of Wayne, was where the Italians first lived when they moved to Dayton. The Sons of Italy had their hall on the upper floors of the Dover Block, that big flatiron building that used to be at Wayne and 5th (where DubPub is now). Longos was on E Third, and Anticoli on E Fifth. They (and the Greeks) worked in that market area along St Clair. Dayton was almost like a “little Chicago” (or little Cleveland) back in the day. More like a “little big city” than the zero it is today.
I think having Anticoli move back to St Annes Hill woul be great, too.
I think most places struggle down in that area… why would you suggest to put another place near there? So it can fail? We need conservative thought on this….. the liberals are almost begging businesses to fail by asking for a relocation. Talk about selling drugs to a 13 year old kid…
I thought some other Asian restaurant was going into Chin’s former space?
@Melissa- the deal at Chin’s apparently went south.
@the rest of you: Clustering restaurants works at The Greene, The Dayton Mall, Brown Street, Miller Lane, why wouldn’t it work on E. 5th Street? Critical mass helps. Franco’s actually raised his game when Pacchia came in- and then The Blue Moon and Cafe Boulevard.
DE – true. But those other places are not the Downtown Dayton. Brown Street is supported by students, staff, Downtown workers at lunch, the Oakwood crowd. DT Dayton/Oregon needs a complete and total make over. Bring in Ty Pennington. We need him and his crew.
It won’t work bc it is Dayton.
I love it. Franco’s raised his game – the other three establishments are looooooooonnnnnnggggg gone. We need some mix of upper end chains. Yes, that may suck to you, but the places mentioned above have that – chains. Chains have money and people who know how to run them. BTW, the indys and chains buy their food from the same/sim vendors, people in the kitchens are rotating in and out, so let’s not act like chains are Burger King type of food. A lot of chains (these days) are great food to be honest. Anyone who has worked in a kitchen will tell you there is little difference between PF Changs and Brio than some mom and pop places. Now I will say some other indys ( L’Burger, :) etc) may go above chain food, but who eats at those places. Jay’s is great, but is not all that fancy. Same with Pine Club, great. But it is not rocket surgery or brain science.
Gene, by your logic are you saying we should do nothing? Expect nothing?
That’s the wrong attitude, no matter where you live.
Downtown can be as good as we want it to be, if people are willing to make that choice.
The question is not why, but why not?
Mostly, all we ever hear are excuses.
PS. I drove down Austin Pike the other day for the first time in ages. The buildings there look about as bland as can be, and I don’t imagine it getting much better when the typical highway interchange development gets in full swing. Completely, utterly boring! At least the Greene has some pretense of character to maintain the illusion.
PPS. I agree something on 5th Street would be great for Anticoli. I drove by the current location the other day and kept on going.
Well, with that I agree. Something, anything is better than nothing. I never really said otherwise. It is DT Dayton, so that is why it won’t succeed. If we had a few anchors then maybe DT could be something. A lot of “Daytons” do this will anchor chain restaurants. It is what it is. And with that I mean that the most important ingrediant in the success of a DT is people. Chains will bring people. Let people imagine opening their own unique store then, bc doing it without anchors is failure 101.
I love it. Franco’s raised his game – the other three establishments are looooooooonnnnnnggggg gone. We need some mix of upper end chains. Yes, that may suck to you, but the places mentioned above have that – chains. Chains have money and people who know how to run them.
This is what they did in Louisville with 4th Street Live. Brought in an outside expert on this stuff, Cordish, who revived a dead downtown shopping area. One of the chains operators he brought in are the same people behind The Pub over in the Greene. There is also a Hard Rock Cafe. So far it seems to be working as a destination spot. But this is a bigger city. I think the concept is the point, agreeing with Gene here.
I think most places struggle down in that area… why would you suggest to put another place near there? So it can fail? We need conservative thought on this….. the liberals are almost begging businesses to fail by asking for a relocation…
Well, Gene, it’s Anticoli thats looking to relocate, and the conservative thinking would be to follow the money, in other words relocate to Greene County…Bellbrook or Beavercreek…or “south”. Indy restaurants work “south”…Meadowlark and Rue Dumain are examples.
I was joking about the conservative thought…. but in a reality a few chains with big money behind them (and not starving independents) would get DT going in the right direction. Fill in with local stuff and BOOM, there you have it. I heard a certain local mexican joint is moving to the OD area…. any word about that?
If the city would get their act together and give a variance to the Ballsey Building (the tall one to the East of Newcoms), lift the liquor license cap, consider closing off the street every Friday at 4 till Monday at 8am- put up a public stage somewhere- add some public bathrooms- a few hookups for food carts- and voila- the place would be hopping.
It’s not rocket science.
Did somebody apply for the variance on Ballsey? That would be excellent! Who is holding it up?
There are already a few food vendors in the Oregon District at night… at least when the weather is a little better!
It would be interesting to see if the Halloween Boo’n’Brew model would work year ’round. One night a year, they close the street and put up stages.
OR is it the uniqueness of the event that attracts such large crowds?
What about the “local” mexican rest locating in the OD area? Is there any truth to this? BC that would make a splash….
Need a good Pizza Place in the OD as well. IN THE OD, not near the OD.
Apparently Gene is unaware of OE.. ? Good pizza. And their upstairs patio on summer nights is awesome. One of the best views in the City (well, equal I guess to T9’s next door…)
I’ve had many late-night conversations on that patio, looking over at the downtown high-rises, wondering if we’ll ever get this town to reach it’s full potential….
But to stay on topic, I love me some Italian. Bring on another one.
Sh*t – I did forget OE. I am sorry. My brain was going for a wood-fired concept, but yes OE has great pizza. My bad. I was going a different direction.
OE could use a face lift though. Unique places don’t have to be well worn
Ok Gene, at risk of being called a bleeding liberal again, local owned business keeps the proceeds in the community, chains pay franchise fees and are required to buy their product from a designated outside source. Ross Perot perfectly identified the giant sucking sound on a national level and they called him crazy, I just don’t get why someone would think putting chains down like Monopoly hotels on Fifth Street would increase local prosperity. Why don’t people realize that most of every dollar coming in the front door of a chain flies straight out the back door?
Chains provide, drum roll please, JOBS. They are BIGGER than locally owned places and provide MORE JOBS. They also buy beer and wine and food and furniture and salt and sugar and light bulbs and etc…. from local vendors as well as huge vendors, just like LOCALLY OWNED places. More than that they provide an anchor to attract more people, therefore growing the economy of a certain part of town, in this case DT and OD. Without chains as anchors you have what we have, which is boring and low key and under used areas for DT Dayton and OD. Continue to be a bleeding heart, you have little idea how a SUCCESSFUL economy works in DT areas or places like the OD. Another John Henrys won’t help, but a nice big chain would actually attract people and therefore support the locally owned businesses.