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How long should traditions continue
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That was a question a husband and wife had to answer when they purchased a long-time family restaurant here in Jamestown a year and a half ago
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They had to decide the things that they would carry on and also decide how to put their own imprint on the business
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Erie News now is John Last picks up on a story he brought to us 20 months ago in this brand new edition of his segment, The Last Word
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I receive a lot of questions when I go out in public, and there's one question that I'm asked frequently
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It's about a certain plate of food. This is an ad that runs on our television station to promote the last word
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The scenes go by very quickly. Stop the video right there. That's the plate of food people have been asking me about after they watch the promo
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They want to know where I was served that big thing. plate of rigatoni. Now that the video is stopped, you can read the sign over my shoulder
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It's Lysandro's restaurant in Jamestown, New York. I love that rigatoni, so I've returned to
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Lassandro's for another serving, but also to find out how owners Chris and Patty Larson are doing
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after buying the restaurant from John Lassandro in August of 2021. When I was here before, the sale had
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just gone through. The first thing on the wish list was Central Air Conditioning We got a grant through the city that paid for half of our improvements up to a certain dollar amount So we got a new floor because of that We painted because of that new lights because of that The Lusandro family had owned and operated the restaurant since
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1954. There's a lot of tradition here. Patty Larson knows those traditions because she worked here
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for 29 years before buying the place. She still uses the old Lissandro family restaurant
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a piece like the fabulous rigatoni sauce that I like. She still serves the homemade sausage
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with the secret Lassandro spices. However, Patty and Chris have also added their own creations
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to the menu. We make a Larson's Lassandro, which is that sausage, eggplant, fried salami
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provolone, onion, and mayo on hand-cut Italian bread from Tullaro's bakery, and it's phenomenal
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The sausage is a favorite of comedian Louis M. Black who comes to Jamestown often as an advisory board member at the National Comedy Center
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But what about John Lassandro, the previous owner? Does he come in to enjoy the improvements
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Oh yeah, comes in for his free cup of coffee. It says it's in the contract
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The Larson's loved their restaurant for many reasons. They first met right here when Chris was
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a customer and Patty served his table. Ah, rigatoni. With the last word at the Sandrose Restaurant in Jamestown
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John Last, Erie News Now
