Dining
Your guide to eating out in Port Chester, Rye Brook and surrounding areas
Out & About
New batch of eateries opening By Jananne Abel
A
nother batch of restaurants that has been in the works for some time is finally coming to fruition while the conversion of a closed restaurant into a new one has just surfaced. In Port Chester, T&J Restaurant & Pizzeria has just completed its move from 227 Westchester Ave. to much larger quarters with an outdoor patio on the ground floor of the brand new attractive office building at 10 Pearl St. constructed by Dominick Neri, president and CEO of Neri’s Bakery Products. The new, much-anticipated restaurant opened Monday, Oct. 24, and when I passed by at lunchtime that day, there wasn’t a space left in the parking lot across the street. I look forward to eating at and touring the new space where I’m sure the Vitiello, Ruggierio and Sassano families will continue to make and serve the delicious pizza and Italian specialties T&J has become known for over the past 26 years and make their customers feel at home in their new quarters.
Wingstop at 110 Abendroth Ave. is shooting for a mid-November opening, said general manager David Lewis on Monday, Oct. 24. “Once we get all of our inspections, that’s what we’re waiting for now.” Wingstop is a national restaurant chain and this will be its first Westchester location and the first of many restaurants franchisee Brian Robinson expects to open. The 2100-square-foot eatery will have 54 seats plus an outdoor seating area and a to-go counter. Wingstop, which has more than 900 locations in the U.S. and around the world, serves classic chicken wings, boneless chicken and crispy chicken tenders in 13 different flavors plus fries and sides. “We’re excited to open,” said Lewis on Monday, Oct. 24.
“It’s the quality that is different,” said Lewis when asked about the store’s proximity to a Buffalo Wild Wings. “The wings are made fresh. They are bigger wings and care goes into them.” It’s been a long wait, but it looks like Brandi Trattoria and Brandi Pizzeria next door to Wingstop in the same building are targeted to open on Jan. 9 at 50 Abendroth Ave. where Spadaro Ristorante had last briefly been. Two of the principals from the private equity Hospitality Group based in White Plains and new general manager Michael Lodolce were sitting around a table in the restaurant Monday morning, Oct. 24 coming up with a plan for and date of opening. Brandi Pizzeria is one of the oldest restaurants in Europe and inventor of the margherita pizza, dating back to 1760 with origins in Naples, Italy. Brandi will include a full service Italian restaurant seating 100 on the Abendroth Avenue side and a small pizzeria accommodating 12 on the North Main Street side of the space, which stretches between the two parallel thoroughfares. There will be outdoor eating for about 50 on the deck overlooking Abendroth. The space has been totally gutted aside from the pizza oven, the bar moved to the opposite side of the restaurant and enlarged and a second pizza oven installed. Physically, the restaurant has been ready to go since July and was expected to
T&J Restaurant & Pizzeria opened Monday, Oct. 24 at its new location at 10 Pearl St. Jananne Abel|Westmore News open in late August. However, thanks to the State Liquor Authority, the owners have just received their liquor license, stated one of the principals this week. Ladolce, who has been in the business for 35 years and has opened 67 restaurants, has laid out a plan for training, marketing and all that
goes into a smooth opening, arriving at the early January date. In mid-October I noticed a sign had gone up on the front of the shuttered nessa enoteca which I knew had been for sale at 325 North Main St. It broadcasts that a Please turn to page 2
A Supplement to the
Argana Restaurant & Bar will soon be bringing its modern Moroccan cuisine to 325 North Main St. Jananne Abel|Westmore News
NEWS Westmore
Wingstop and Brandi Trattoria will be opening in the same building on Abendroth Avenue a few months Richard Abel|Westmore News apart.