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Not-so-happy hour: Martini’s to close
The owner ran the business for more than eight years.
YOUNGSTOWN — The owner of a downtown restaurant and bar is closing Friday and opening a new place in Canfield.
Matthew Sutton, owner of Martini’s Downtown, said business at his place slowed down during the past six months, though there were still crowds for lunch and happy hour.
One problem, he said, is the number of downtown eateries and bars has increased in the past few years.
“I think the size of the pie is the same, but more people are trying to get pieces of it,” Sutton said. “It was nice when we were the only game in town.”
Sutton has operated Martini’s in the basement of the Ohio One Building, 100 E. Federal St., for more than eight years. Under previous ownership, it was called The End of the Tunnel.
Martini’s is having a customer appreciation party today, starting at 3 p.m., and is offering “going-out-of-business” prices for food and drinks Thursday and Friday during lunch and happy hour.
Sutton is opening the YOLO Cafe at a strip plaza in Canfield on state Route 46, near Shields Road. YOLO stands for “You Only Live Once.” Sutton lives in Canfield.
Martini’s menu included sandwiches and hamburgers. YOLO will feature charcoal-grilled Mediterranean food and will be more “family oriented,” Sutton said.
Though Sutton is leaving downtown Youngstown, he has nothing bad to say about it. If YOLO is a success, Sutton said he’d consider opening a similar restaurant in downtown in a few years.
Phil Kidd, the city’s downtown director of special events and special projects, said he understands Martini’s struggles.
“It’s tough,” Kidd said. “He’s basement level competing against establishments on West Federal Street.”
The city offered to help find another downtown location, but Sutton wanted to go to Canfield, Kidd said.
Though a number of downtown restaurants have opened or expanded in recent years, Martini’s isn’t the only one to close its doors.
Anthony’s On The River, 15 Oak Hill Ave., is available for catering and private parties, but is no longer open to the public for meals.
Most of the restaurant’s problems were caused by the closing about a year ago of the Spring Common Bridge, the main link that connects the city’s West Side and Austintown to downtown, Anthony Saadey, its owner, recently said.
Anthony’s, in business for more than 10 years, is located between the bridge and a detour, making vehicular traffic near the restaurant almost nonexistent.
The Core, a martini bar at 36 W. Federal St. in the Wick Building, also recently closed after four years in business.
The Frangos Group, which owns the building, is interested in reopening the bar. The company has received a number of inquiries, but the discussions are preliminary, said Bill Sperlazza, its development project manager.
skolnick@vindy.com