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101 years later, Melillo's Tavern holds strong as village hub
Lowellville landmark undergoes restoration
By Sarah Lehr
lowellville
Employees at the modern-day site of Melillo’s Tavern say most of the stories from the saloon’s illustrious past aren’t fit to print.
Ever since Melillo’s opened at 300 E. Liberty St. in 1914, it’s been a hub for the community, though the current co-owner, Tiffany DelSignore, said it’s become less raucous and more family-friendly over the years.
The 101-year-old tavern, which once housed a hotel on its second floor, benefited from the heyday of the steel and railroad industries. Workers would cash their checks, then head to Melillo’s for a little food, drink and relaxation. Pennsylvania residents flocked to the tavern due to their home state’s strict liquor laws, and, according to lore, Melillo’s became a speakeasy once Prohibition went national in 1920.
Though the tavern, which since has been christened “The Station Grille at Melillo’s Tavern” in recognition of the train station across the street, has changed hands over the years, it continues to attract loyal customers. The place is popular for celebrating milestones such as birthdays and graduations, and many Lowellville natives who have since moved away make a point to stop at
Melillo’s whenever they’re back in town.
The current owners, Tiffany DelSignore and her husband, Ralph, have launched efforts to restore the tavern to its original appearance. The previous owner and a member of the Melillo family, Michael Zarlengo, who died in 2013, passed the tavern on to the DelSignores after he fell ill.
Among other renovations, the DelSignores have patched up the original tin ceiling and redone the dining room with laminate flooring. They’ve also removed the pinball machines and a spittoon trough, once dug out of the floor in front of the bar.
Within a few months, they plan to open a banquet room in the back, complete with a fireplace.
Artifacts from the restaurant’s past, such as the original safe, oil-painted murals and a Black Label whisky lamp, remain on display. The wooden paneling behind the bar was imported piece by piece from Italy decades ago.
In the long-term, the DelSignores hope to repair the second floor balcony which looks out to East Liberty Street and the hills beyond, and to reopen the second floor as a bed and breakfast.
Though the original proprietor, Joseph Melillo, heralded the hotel’s opening in a 1914 Vindicator article, stating, “I have every confidence in the future of Lowellville and feel that the opening of a modern hotel is justified,” the tavern’s upstairs now is used only for storage. Employees have unearthed a hodgepodge of items on the second floor, ranging from mattresses to aged beer bottles to neon Miller Lite signs to an old medical textbook, but several workers say they’re wary of going up there alone for fear of ghosts.
Assistant Manager Michelle Godfrey reassures herself by attributing the regular bumps and sighs to creaking wood, but pastry chef John Torrento insists he’s had paranormal encounters. According to employees, a psychic visited the restaurant just last week and announced, “Joseph doesn’t like the lights,” seemingly in reference to the first owner, Joseph Melillo.
Haunted or not, Melillo’s is one of the oldest structures in Lowellville. Since it is made of brick, it was one of the few buildings to survive a massive 1917 fire, which purportedly spread at the hands of burglars who broke into a safe at Kiefer & Co.’s liquor store the night before. Another theory, advanced in a Vindicator article, speculates that the fire began by accident in a stable owned by Joseph Melillo himself. The article estimates the fire’s total damage at $70,000 – some $1.29 million in today’s money.
Sam Rogers, a 79-year-old Lowellville native, was a regular at Melillo’s in the 1950s, long after the tavern’s bootlegging days. As a boy, Rogers tagged along with his father to the restaurant each week. The adults would discuss politics and sports, but Rogers remembers enjoying a hot dog and a pop while watching the black and white television. Melillo’s, Rogers noted, is within walking distance for most of the village, which was especially important at a time when people drove less.
Today, Melillo’s customers come for the freshly baked bread, the hand-ground burgers, the chili dogs, the steak and the pizza. Fish fries draw a crowd each Friday and polka night sells out every third Wednesday of the month.
Above all, Melillo’s is a place for neighbors.
“It’s kind of like ‘Cheers,’” DelSignore said. “Everybody seems to know who you are.”