The land on which Orazio Pub stands has been a local tavern since the
turn of the last century. The original tavern building, a two story wood
frame structure, housed several rooms on the second floor. It remain
that way until 1961, when the entire structure burned down. I was told
that it had two flaps for a front door at the time, with additional
apartments above and behind. The property has had numerous owners over
the years including: Parkview Tavern, The Nickle Inn, and Duisenberg's.
Then, a retired auto dealer, Angelo Egizio, and his wife Rusty (my
parents) purchased the property. Angelo and I worked out a deal and we
were in business! We worked mornings together at Orazio Pub for nearly
15 years. We had some great times cooking turkeys to give away on
Thanksgiving Eve. I think my Dad liked the fact that everyone tried his
turkey first. Creating our own recipes, Angelo perfected all the soups,
while I spiced up my own special chili. Angelo loved to see people enjoy
his food, which is a true Italian tradition. Angelo loved to cook, and
everyone who knew him heard Angelo talk about his soup recipe, and
always working to perfect it.
I am Angelo's son Owen Egizio, and
my Father was from Caramonica Italy in the Abruzzi Province, located in
a mountainous region northeast of Rome near the Adriatic Sea. Angelo's
Father "Orazio" emigrated from there around 1915. After making several
trips back and forth to the U.S. during World War I, Orazio was captured
while on a returning trip to the "Old Country." He managed to escape
from his imprisonment, and found safe haven in Austria where he had the
happiest time of his life working for a couple farmers. The farm was
home for a while, but when the war ended, Italy paid for his return to
the U.S. for fighting in the war. Months later, Orazio purchased a road
house on Rt. 66 in Joliet called "The Venice Tavern." As the story goes,
Orazio sent money to his wife Philomena to bring her, and their three
Sons back to the U.S. Philomena sent a letter to Orazio explaining that
she purchased a restaurant in Caramonica, and that he should return back
home. He responded by telling her to sell the place because he's not
coming back. Philomena agreed to sell the restaurant, and moved to
America with her three boys Flore, Nick, and Angelo. They resided above
the Venice Tavern, and settled into their new life in America. Angelo's
room was above the entrance, and right out front facing the infamous Rt.
66. The Tavern business also included a gas station, one of the original
road houses on the growing American asphalt.
We have tried many
new things over the years. Some ideas worked, while others did not, but
Angelo still loved trying new ideas. If you like good food, friendly
people, and long for that timeless place where the fast pace society is
left at the door, come and visit Orazio Pub. Angelo is no longer with
us, but his love for food and people still are present. I am Owen
Egizio, and I invite you to a nice place to eat, drink, and spend time
with your friends.
Sincerely, Owen Egizio
Orazio's turned 30 in 2017, but bar's history goes back to
the '30s
From The Naperville Sun:
Whether it was
the Parkside Cafe, the Nickel Inn, JB Deucenburg's or, as it has been
since 1987, Orazio's Pub, the corner bar by the train station at 333 N.
Center St. has been a "nice little neighborhood tavern" since the late
1930s.
In the early 1940s, it was Ray Baumgartner's tavern.
"Every morning the guys would go to work at Kroehler's at 7, and they'd
stop by first for a shot and a beer before work and after work," said
Ray's son, Ray Baumgartner Jr., 83. "It was an 'eye-opener' they called
it." "Little Ray," as he used to be known, remembers being at the bar
after the big train wreck, sitting next to the radio broadcaster sending
news of the accident to listeners around the area. "My dad ran out of
everything in the store in a couple hours that day, because so many
people were coming to see the accident scene. I was standing next to the
guy broadcasting on the radio, they were handing me the papers after
they got done reading them." Ray was far from the only child at the
neighborhood bar. Joe Modaff's dad knew big Ray, and used to stop in
occasionally. "Whenever the kids were with him," Modaff said, "Ray would
give us peanuts and orange pop and tell us to sit at the corner table."
Shortly after Baumgartner sold the place to Oscar Springborn, who
named it Parkside, it burned down and was rebuilt. The former two-story
tavern with three apartments above became a single-story tavern.
Bill Guy has been a fan of the bar since the early 1960s. He figures he
was about 5 when he first came in with his dad. He grew up down the
street, so the pair would walk there together back when Whitey Ziemian
and Paul Freiburg — known to entertain on the organ and bass fiddle —
owned the place.
A lot has changed since then, but the pub is
much the same. Sure, the booths were taken out after the two plumbers
sold to Bob Nicholas — he replaced them with the current round tables
and renamed the place The Nickel Inn — and the video games now in the
back sit where the bowling game used to be.
"But when I was a
kid, the bar had the same top on it," said Guy, tapping the white
formica with vintage gold faux-marbling where his beer waited. "The back
bar cabinet was added by Egizios though."
At one point the bar
was owned by Don and Elaine Rodesiler, and before the Egizios bought it,
it was called JB Deucenburg's.
But in 1987 it was for sale, and
Angelo Egizio, the former used car manager for Winston Chevrolet, had
always dreamed of owning a tavern, said his son, Michael. So he bought
it. (The bar's current name comes from Angelo's dad, Orazio, who
immigrated from Italy in 1915 and owned a gas station/tavern in Joliet
called Venice Tavern on the old Route 66.) Michael worked at the bar for
the first eight months. "I hated every minute of it, but my dad always
thought it was great. I left when my brother got out of the Marines and
took over."
Angelo and his son Owen worked together "every
morning for nearly 15 years. We had some great times cooking turkeys to
give away on Thanksgiving Eve," Owen once wrote for the pub's website.
"Angelo loved to see people enjoy his food."
Owen bought out his
dad in 2000 and ran it until his death in 2012. His daughter Michelle
took over.
"The customers, the employees are like family," she
said. "The building is like a home to me. It's been the one constant
thing in all of our lives — we've moved a lot and had a lot of houses.
That's why my grandfather called it a 'pub' — it's more family oriented
than a bar or a tavern. People bring their kids in, I bring my
almost-2-year-old here. It's like Cheers, everyone knows everyone."
The "family" includes lifelong customer Guy and his bar-mates,
former neighbors Francis and Daniel Munson. "We grew up in the next
block — our dad came here, he had an office across the tracks," Fran
said. Why do they spend so much time at the far corner end of the bar,
right in front of the popcorn machine? "Because you always know someone
when you come in," said Daniel.
Around 3:30 on weekdays, the
commuters start filtering in.
"One customer who lives in Chicago
says Orazio's is his favorite bar, he goes here before going home," said
Michelle, who has worked at the bar for 17 years.
The pub hasn't
lost the charm that made Angelo and Owen Egizio love it so.
As
Owen wrote: "If you like good food, friendly people, and long for that
timeless place where fast-paced society is left at the door, come and
visit Orazio Pub. Angelo is no longer with us, but his love for food and
people still are present. I invite you to a nice place to eat, drink,
and spend time with your friends."
