SOUTH AVE. EATERY Soffo's steps up to the plate
The former owner of Timberlanes is opening an Italian restaurant.
THE VINDICATOR, YOUNGSTOWN, OHIO
By DON SHILLING
VINDICATOR BUSINESS EDITOR
BOARDMAN -- Roy Paparodis smiles when asked why he thinks his new Boardman restaurant will succeed.
"Everyone asks that question," said the former owner of Timberlanes in Salem.
Everyone asks because they have watched five other restaurants come and go at the site he picked on South Avenue near Western Reserve Road.
His new Italian restaurant, Soffo's Cafe, was to open today. Paparodis said he's confident it will work because much has changed since the building first went up in 1993.
The widening of South Avenue is nearly complete, and commercial development nearby has been rapid. Several office buildings have gone up, and a technology park is being built. Wendy's recently opened across the street, and Pizza Hut is building a new restaurant there as well.
Paparodis said he's heard rumors of national retailers' being interested in nearby sites.
"The demographics haven't always been so good, but I think the timing is perfect for Soffo's," he said.
Returned to Austintown
Les and Frank Horvath most recently tried the site as a home for their restaurant. They moved Rachel's Restaurant & amp; Bar from Austintown in 2000 and later tried a new concept, the Shark Club.
Earlier this year, they left the site and reopened Rachel's back in Austintown, saying a sluggish economy and lengthy road construction prevented them from succeeding in Boardman.
Paparodis said he used to think about coming to Boardman someday when he operated Timberlanes, which has fine-dining and casual restaurants, banquet rooms and a hotel.
"Boardman is a giant market. People come from all over," he said.
Paparodis said he didn't think he would get back in the restaurant business after selling Timberlanes, but he thought the South Avenue site was too good to pass up. He said he is buying the property from Sylvester Land Co., which had leased it to the previous restaurants.
He said the large kitchen is ideal, although he has added new kitchen equipment and dining room furnishings.
Paparodis said he decided to sell Timberlanes last year to Wade Snively of Canton because the economy had slowed and he thought it was time to try something else. Paparodis' father, the late Odess, bought Timberlanes in 1962.
Paparodis named his new restaurant after his father's nickname.
What's on the menu
Soffo's Cafe will use the best-selling menu items from Timberlanes as well as some new ones. The chefs are Robert Skalada, former chef at Bertolini's of Las Vegas; Eric Dellarco, a local resident who owned Classics 3 Baking Co. and Dell's Cucina; Mark Bittler, former executive chef at the Avalon Inn; and Glen Kohart, who had been at Timberlanes.
Entree prices range from $7.99 for a pasta dinner to $17.99 for filet mignon.
For now, Paparodis is opening about half of the dining room space, plus the bar and outside deck. He intends to have the rest of the inside space ready in December. He will use that space for banquets and meetings, although he may expand the dining room if there is enough demand.
Timberlanes has 900 seats, while Soffo's has 150 with the possibility of expanding to 250.
Another difference will be the involvement of Paparodis' wife, Terri, who is general manager of the new restaurant. She wasn't involved in operations of Timberlanes because she was at home with their two children.
Paparodis, 46, of Salem, said having her involved helped him decide to go ahead with the new venture. Running a smaller restaurant with her help should make it more enjoyable, he said.
"There's a lot of anxiety," he said. "But it's the kind of anxiety you feel at an amusement park."
shilling@vindy.com