- April 26, 2024
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Owning a restaurant has never been easy, but for Meryl Frappier, the last 32 years have been the best time of her life.
It's a period of time that started when she and her late husband Bobby opened a 450-square-foot hoagie shop in South Daytona in 1990, when Frappier was five-and-a-half months pregnant and making philly cheesesteaks. She'd deliver sandwiches then too; People would ask Bobby where she was sometimes and he'd tell them she was delivering.
"The baby?" they would ask.
"No, food," Bobby replied.
And their daughter grew up upstairs in that shop — with a futon, a VCR and delivered food by her parents.
"The memories that I have, they'll just last me forever," Frappier said. "And the love that I've been shown from this community — I feel like the richest girl in the world."
Six months after opening the hoagie shop, the Frappiers opened Cafe Frappes on Beach Street in Daytona. In September 1997, they moved to the location in Ormond's downtown district at 123 W. Granada Blvd. They named it Frappes North and in 2016, renamed it to Frappes Italian Grille.
On Thursday, June 23, Frappes held its final night of dining.
It's a decision that Frappier didn't make lightly. Following her husband Bobby's unexpected death almost in 2018, she put her soul into running the restaurant, which included keeping it afloat during the pandemic and celebrating its 30th anniversary. But a few months ago, around 10 p.m. one night after Frappier worked a catering party, she was sitting on the floor eating a plate of rice when she contemplated what she wanted for her future.
"I felt that after honoring [Bobby] for four years, it was time for me to have my time," said Frappier, who hopes to pursue her passion for writing and fashion in the near future.
Thinking back on the 32 years of memories makes her emotional, but they're good tears, she said. She's been able to share in milestones with many generations of families, becoming part of their lives by welcoming them into Frappes, which she said was an extension of her home.
"We weren't just a restaurant," Frappier said. "It was all about the love and the food was made with love. We all knew each other — We were family. The guests were family. The staff were family."
Some jobs you do for love and some jobs you do for money, she added. Running Frappes was a job she did for love. She thanks the community for its years of support and generosity, and expressed being grateful to have been able to be a part of Ormond Beach "for 32 delicious years."
"I wanted to go out on top," Frappier said. "I wanted to go out like a lady with grace, and I believed that we achieved that."
