New South End restaurant gets go-ahead from License Commission

April 27, 2017 | G. Michael Dobbs
news@thereminder.com



SPRINGFIELD – Although the owner of the new Ciro’s restaurant is not related to the owners of the former South End institution, he is hoping people will remember the name fondly and try his eatery when it opens.

The Board of License Commissioners unanimously approved the liquor license for the restaurant at its meeting on April 20.

The new restaurant will be at 904-912 Main St., which was most recently occupied by Blackjack’s Steak House. During the presentation to the board Attorney Thomas Rooke said that other than the signage there are no major cosmetic changes to the interior, with the exception of retiring an open kitchen with seats at a bar looking into it.

Rooke said the restaurant owner has met with Father Robert White, the pastor of Mount Carmel Church and has agreed to the conditions he suggested which revolved around the hours for the restaurant. The owner plans to be open Sunday through Thursday from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. and would stay open until midnight on Fridays and Saturdays. A patio area would close for service at 11 p.m. every night.

The Planning Board and the South End neighborhood Council also approved the restaurant’s location and plans.

Rooke said, “This is a perfect fit for the South End.”

David Vecchiarelli, the restaurant’s general manager, told the board there would be an estimated 20 employees. The new business has not yet applied for an entertainment license from the mayor’s office but Vecchiarelli anticipates doing it.

The City Council must approve a special permit attached to the location and Rooke said the paperwork for that action has been filed.

The restaurant will have 97 seats with up to 60 more on the patio, Vecchiarelli said.

He said originally the plan was to open the restaurant by Mother’s Day next month, but now if all of the licenses and permits are in place June1 is the anticipated date.

Vecchiarelli described the menu to be offered as “fine dining Italian style … with the emphasis on fine dining.”

Majority owner Gerald Glasser is an attorney in Springfield with Kahill, Glasser and Associates, who said that while this is the first restaurant he has owned he was raised in the restaurant business.  When asked about the use of the name, he said, “With the renaissance [of the city] it seemed to be an appropriate name to use.”

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