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Marc and Dawn Ascioti inside the new shop they will open as Ascioti's To Go in Liverpool's Ponderosa Plaza.
(Don Cazentre | dcazentre@syracuse.com)
After 99 years, the iconic Ascioti’s Market in Solvay is finally ready to branch out.
Later this month, Marc and Dawn Ascioti will open Ascioti's To Go, a spinoff of the locally legendary Italian meat shop. It will take the spot in Liverpool's Ponderosa Plaza on old Liverpool Road recently vacated by another local legend in Italian food -- Squadrito's.
The two Ascioti’s shops will have a lot in common – most importantly the Italian sausage and meatballs made on site by Marc Ascioti, grandson of market founders Anthony and Catherine Ascioti. They opened the Solvay store, at 2239 Milton Ave., in 1914.
Marc Ascioti prepares meatball mix by hand at his shop on Milton Avenue in Sovay in this 2008 photo. The mix includes beef chuck, cheese, bread, and spices.
“I’ve been making the meatballs and sausage since I was a kid,” said Marc Ascioti, who will also make fresh kielbasa at both shops and sell braciole, bacon and other specialty items. “I don’t really remember learning to do it – it seems like I’ve always done it.”
Both shops will also sell DiLauro’s Italian bread and Polish products from Hapanowicz Bros. Meat Market in New York Mills.
But there will be differences. The original Ascioti’s is first and foremost a meat market.
Dawn Ascioti, who will manage the Liverpool shop with son, Jarred, said the new place will offer fewer cuts of meat but will serve cooked to-go items like meatball or sausage sandwiches that are not available in Solvay. Taking a cue from her own Lebanese heritage, Dawn Ascioti will also offer her own family’s take on Mediterranean specialties like hummus and baklowa.
There are also shelves for pasta and bread, olives and cheeses and Italian pastries.
Dawn will also have a warm pot of coffee going at all times, so customers can have a “courtesy” cup while they wait for their orders. They can also buy coffee and soda to go.
“I always wanted my own coffee shop,” Dawn Ascioiti said. “This gets me there.”
The shop is in the rear of the building at 207 Oswego St. (Old Liverpool Road) that once was a Ponderosa Steakhouse, and until recently housed Juanita's Mexican Kitchen. The restaurant part of the building is going to reopen soon as spinoff of Francesca's Cucina in Syracuse. It will be a more casual version of the city restaurant, serving pizza and pasta.
Juanita’s, like Squadrito’s, had moved from Syracuse’s North Side to Liverpool in recent years to be closer to its suburban customer base.
Squadrito’s, a shop similar to Ascioti’s specializing in Italian meats and cheeses, closed in August when owners Frances and Vito Cusumano decided to retire. Juanita’s had closed in April.
Since they began work and put up a “coming soon” sign, Marc and Dawn Ascioti have been peppered with questions about when they will open and what they will offer.
The answer to the first question is they hope to be open Thanksgiving week – the start of the historically busy season for Ascioti’s.
“People are so excited by this,” Dawn Ascioti said. “So are we.”