DeWitt, N.Y. — Joey DeCuffa is putting off his retirement and staying on the job.
Joey’s Italian Restaurant, which has operated near Carrier Circle since 1982, is currently “off the market” after an attempt to sell it in an online auction last week.
There were lots of bids, DeCuffa said, “but nothing that I wanted to accept. I was going to retire, but now I’m just going to wait. Nothing is changing, it’s business as usual.”
When he put the restaurant up for sale earlier this year, DeCuffa said he wanted to find a buyer who would keep it running as it is, with the same service and staff. Joey’s has been one of Central New York’s most popular Italian dining spots for decades.
The sale was to include both the fine-dining Joey’s Classic Italian and its casual-menu sister operation, Pronto Joey’s. Both are in a building at 6594 Thompson Road, near Exit 35 on the State Thruway. The auction also included a separate building, which once housed Pronto Joey’s and is currently leased by Big Mama’s Cheesecakes.
Keeping things running as usual will get a boost this week, when Joey’s brother, Rick DeCuffa, returns to the kitchen. Rick DeCuffa suffered an injury three months ago that has kept him out of work.
“We hope to see people coming out having lunch or dinner with us,” Joey DeCuffa said.
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Don Cazentre writes for NYup.com, syracuse.com and The Post-Standard. Reach him at dcazentre@nyup.com, or follow him at NYup.com, on Twitter or Facebook.
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