Business & Tech

Former Ruth's Chris Manager Comes to Franco's

Larry Stakes became the operations manager of Franco's in Dormont and Peters on Jan. 1, and he's working to ramp up the location's reputation as a neighborhood favorite.

Patrons at Franco’s Trattoria might see a familiar face in the establishment’s new operations manager.

Larry Stakes, a Dormont resident who has been the general manager of Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse for the past 18 years, became the operations manager of Franco’s on Jan. 1.

The restaurant is still under the same ownership, but Stakes will oversee operations for both the Dormont and Peters Township locations.

Interested in local real estate?Subscribe to Patch's new newsletter to be the first to know about open houses, new listings and more.

Stakes said he embraced the opportunity to manage Franco’s because the restaurant is one of his own favorite local places.

“This was one of my favorite restaurants anyway,” he said. “I live right around the corner, and we’d come up all the time.”

Interested in local real estate?Subscribe to Patch's new newsletter to be the first to know about open houses, new listings and more.

“In the restaurant business, you always have to change and be relevant,” Stakes said. “I look at this as a neighborhood restaurant. I walked here for years, and we have probably 500 homes in this neighborhood behind us that could do that.

The changes won’t be major, he said. A few new Italian dishes will be added to the Franco’s menu, and the big change will deal with how the restaurant is marketed to the community, and how it interacts with residents.

“I think we have a false reputation of being overly expensive,” Stakes said. “This is one of the only sit-down restaurants in this stretch of Dormont that is a restaurant first, rather than a bar. We’re going to keep it that way.”

On-the-ground marketing is the first goal, Stakes said, to build relationships in the neighborhood. Franco’s representatives are starting to go door-to-door in the area to tell residents about specials and share information about the restaurant.

They’ve also started posting frequent updates about the restaurants and daily specials on the Franco’s Trattoria Facebook page, which is for both the Dormont and Peters Township locations.

“I think we need to be the neighborhood restaurant,” Stakes said. “Where people know your name and when you come in, we know you, too.”

Stakes said eventually he wants to work with other businesses in the area to better market that section of West Liberty Avenue as a whole. Dormont is one of the few remaining communities where a true community still exists, he said, and he hopes Franco’s can continue to be one of the good neighbors at the center of it.

“This is great food. It’s simple. Everything is prepared fresh. It’s hard to get that anywhere else,” he said. “I know we can make everyone happy who lives here.”

 


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here