The restaurant's Italian recipes came from Grandma (Rosa) Paolucci,
who came from Italy in 1894 to open the fruit market with her husband Dominic and his
brother Felix. They came to Atchison from Frosolone, Italy, a small town just north of Naples.
Dominic
and Rosa had three sons, Nick, John, Felix and one daughter, Mary. All
but Felix, who left for a Navy career, worked in the family business.
In
1979, Mike Begley and his wife Margie purchased the grocery, along with
the whole building from Mike's mother Mary. Mary continued to work in
the grocery until she was 87 years old. She died in 2000.
They still make up the spice bags for the meatballs and spaghetti sauce. Don't ask for any recipes! They are secret.
FUN STORY
Another secret recipe handed down from Uncle Johnny is that of the ham salad.
The
residents and staff of Village Villa of Nortonville were the judges for
a ham salad contest in the area. They awarded Paolucci & Begley
Deli with having the best ham salad in Atchison!
THE START
Though the Paolucci family has been in business since 1894, Paolucci's
Restaurant opened in 1983. This Italian/American restaurant now has a
fifth generation working in the family business.
HISTORY
Jacks cafe, in the North side of the building was
in operation for more than 60 years under three different owners.
In October, 1982, it closed and Mike and Margie remodeled it and opened it as Paolucci's Restaurant in February 1983.
In April 1990, we remodeled the
upstairs to make Paolucci's Lounge. The rooms above the grocery and restaurant
were rented for many years. Since we were only a block away from the
passenger train station, the rooms were always full. Jack's Cafe and the
grocery store used to stay open late to accommodate late arriving passengers. They closed the train depot in the late 1960s.
Mike
and Margie's oldest son, Ed, manages the lounge and helps with the
whole business. His son, Michael, is a host and waiter in the
restaurant making this a fifth generation business.
A banquet room is on the south side of the building that was remodeled and opened in 2002. Marge says the
building is a bit like a maze, it just keeps going on and on. In fact, Mike and Margie live above the
store behind the lounge. Mike has lived there all but eight years of his life.
E-mail: mbegley3@att.net
Source www.paoluccisbegley.com and the menu
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Paolucci's also have a deli. Photo courtesy Atchison Chamber.
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