ANGENETTA'S CAFE Canfield restaurant puts liquor option on ballot

The owners say they just want the chance to compete with other eateries.
By JEANNE STARMACK
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER
CANFIELD -- If you live in Precinct 5 in the city and you plan to vote in the Nov. 8 election, you're invited to a party.
Tony and Phyllis Olin, owners of AngeNetta's Cafe and Catering on Cardinal Drive, want to meet you and talk to you about their restaurant, which has been there for three years. They want to show off the place, which is an upscale, cafe-style restaurant -- it's a family place too, though not like a Perkins, Tony is quick to point out.
"But people look at us like we are," he said. And that's why voters in Precinct 5 are important to their business. Because this year, they're going to do something that hasn't been done before in the dry city of Canfield.
They're going to have a liquor option on the ballot for their restaurant. It's the first time a restaurant has tried it -- even though Giant Eagle has attempted it several times for carryout, said city manager Charles Tieche.
Previous resistance
The last time Giant Eagle tried a liquor issue was in 2003, said Richard Nagel, petitions clerk at the Mahoning County Board of Elections. That issue was shot down by voters on a split question -- for beer, 131 to 84, and for wine and mixed beverages containing 21 percent alcohol by volume or less, 129 to 87.
But that was in another precinct, No. 2, said Nagel. And, he said, the issue is different for a restaurant that only plans to serve beer and wine, with no carryout.
Nagel also said the issue is for a single site, meaning that if it passes for the restaurant, it doesn't affect the rest of the precinct.
"Used to be you'd get a whole precinct wet, but four or five years ago, it went to single-site," he said. "It's obviously an easier sell than, 'we'll have a bar on every corner.'"
But AngeNetta's doesn't even plan to have its own bar. The Olins want to serve only beer and wine with dinner to restaurant patrons, Tony said.
Family focus
When you first walk into the restaurant, you're greeted by big smiles in a large photo of the couple's two daughters. Angela Briceland, 23, manages their other restaurant, the Emerald Diner in Hubbard. Daughter Annette Hinrichs, 29, is a nurse at St. Elizabeth's. The restaurant is named for them.
Next, you see a tempting, glass-cased display of Phyllis' desserts. And then there's the open kitchen, which is designed to let customers watch their food being cooked.
Tony and Phyllis put in long hours at their restaurant. During a slow time last week between lunch and dinner, they sat down and talked about how much the business means to them and how much they love living in Canfield.
They said the restaurant employs about 50 people, including part-timers, many of them in high school. Those high school students, they said, would not be serving alcohol.
"We feel we're responsible people," Tony said. "We're just trying to compete.
Losing customers
Tony said that many patrons have told him that they like to have a beer or a glass of wine with their dinners, so they pass on AngeNetta's in favor of restaurants outside the city.
He said he is worried not only about restaurants in Boardman but also about restaurants that might arrive in Canfield Township on U.S. Route 224. Last year, the township passed six liquor issues, five of which are not being used yet, he said.
Tony said AngeNetta's thrives on serving good food but is still losing revenue to those other restaurants. "Our Saturday nights are busy, but they could be a lot better."
He said people who live in the city and drive to restaurants outside of it to have a drink with their dinners would have the option of staying in Canfield.
The Olins want people to remember that their restaurant is a different environment than a bar.
Concerns
But, Tony said, he's worried about opposition because Canfield High School is close to the restaurant.
Under Ohio law, a public institution such as a school, church, playground, park or library that is within 500 feet of a business that has applied for a liquor license can object to the granting of that license.
Matt Mullins, a spokesman for the Ohio Department of Liquor Control, said the department automatically notifies institutions that fall under that guideline.
He said an objection could result in a hearing, typically in the county seat, or could simply be for the record. He said an institution that objects for a hearing has to provide proof that the liquor license will be a substantial interference with public decency or peace. "We'd need concrete evidence."
The Olins said they have tried to set up a meeting with schools Superintendent Dante Zambrini, without success.
Zambrini said last week that the school district is researching what options it has if the liquor issue passes.
Zambrini said he has heard from constituents who have concerns about the school being so close to a business that serves liquor.
"It's a situation where students use the sidewalk. We also have student drivers. So safety would be the big issue," he said.
Zambrini also said some people have questioned whether the restaurant should get a liquor permit because it is so close to a group home for adults with disabilities.
Confidence
Consumer Support Services runs the home, where eight people live. AngeNetta's is across the parking lot from it.
Cathi Beck, director of CSS in Mahoning County, said her company is not concerned about the restaurant serving beer and wine.
"Not at all," she said. "The restaurant is not a big establishment. It's where people go in small, intimate bunches. We've never had any problems with them, and we don't foresee any."
Phyllis said she believes AngeNetta's liquor issue has a good chance of passing, because when the Olins circulated the required petition to get it on the ballot, they got 250 signatures out of 560 households in the precinct. They only needed 127.
But they want every voter in Precinct No. 5 to come to their gathering at the restaurant Oct. 23 from 7 to 9 p.m.
"We would like people to come," Tony said. "Even people who are against it. We'd like them to express their feelings."