3rd LaScola to take place of Hungry I in Sylvania

Italian grill to open sometime in April

3/29/2013

An Italian restaurant will take the place of The Hungry I in Sylvania.

The owners of The Hungry I in Sylvania say the restaurant at 6060 Renaissance Place closed March 9 and they will open an Italian eatery in its place.

The latest one will be the third in the LaScola Restaurant Group that Moussa Salloukh and Gus Nicolaidis formed five years ago. They own LaScola Italian Grill in Toledo and LaScola Tuscan Grill in Findlay.

The new restaurant, to be called Mama LaScola Italian Kitchen, is under construction. The owners expect it to open in mid to late April.

The dining area will have a vintage New York atmosphere with black-and-white-checkered tablecloths, Tiffany-style chandeliers, and the generous portions for which Italian-American restaurants are known.

“Our quality and generous portions will be the same, but in a more casual atmosphere,” Mr. Nicolaidis said.

The Hungry I, originally owned by Mr. Nicolaidis and his brother Nick, opened in 1975 in the Franklin Park area. It was known for its American-style sandwiches.

Mr. Salloukh and Mr. Nicolaidis brought the restaurant back in 2009 in Sylvania.

In other restaurant news, the owner of Southbriar Shopping Center in Sylvania confirmed that BGumps restaurant closed earlier this month. David Schmitt, who leased the building on Main Street to the restaurant owners, said he could not provide further information about the closing or if the owners were planning on opening another restaurant in that spot.

Contact Natalie Trusso Cafarello at: ntrusso@theblade.com or 419-206-0356.