By Barbara Brewer La Mere
Dave Johnson, fourth-generation area restaurateur, has added yet another Dango’s to his restaurant holdings.
The great-grandson of the proprietor of the first local Fitzgerald’s establishment, a hotel located at the top of Glen Street Hill (approximately at the site of the Civic Center marquee) until it was destroyed by fire in the 1940’s, Johnson opened his newest venture at the site of the former Des & Dil’s on Palmer Avenue in Corinth on St. Patrick’s Day weekend.
Johnson said people from Corinth have been coming over Glens Falls and Wilton Mountain roads for quite a while to visit his other establishments and that he’s been scouting around for a Corinth location for a few years. The new location didn’t require much more than some painting, some attention to the floors and a little electrical work in order to get it ready to open.
Johnson is the owner of Dango’s at 158 Maple St. in Glens Falls (newly remodeled), Dango’s Dugout (formerly Russo’s) and Abbott’s at 43 Main St. in South Glens Falls and Fitzgerald’s Steak House, a little further south by Exit 17, at 1393 Route 9, South Glens Falls,. He also owns the Dango Fitzgerald’s Irish Pub at 38 Caroline St. In Saratoga Springs.
Johnson is a partner with Tony Poulos in the Irish Pub, Irish Pizza, and the Casino Pub, all on South Street in Glens Falls.
The Dango’s are all Irish pubs/sports bars/steakhouses, with a reputation for generous portions and great chicken wings. (Wing night in Corinth is Thursdays.)
The newest location features 30 TVs, including eight behind the bar, and one in each booth. Beyond steaks, the Corinth Dango’s will offer soups and salads, seafood, Italian dishes, pub fare and subs. Pizza will become available at the new location this summer. In the meantime, there are choices from an eight-page menu.
There’s seating for about 100 and Johnson has been glad to see a mix of people of all ages, families with kids and some older people, as customers.
Live entertainment comes on the weekends. Dango’s opens at 11 a.m. Scheduled closing time is 11 p.m., but that gets stretched into the wee hours if the crowd is right. The bands start around 9 p.m.
Johnson is proud to be descended from a family with historic connections to Glens Falls. His great- uncle was a food friend of Gov. Al Smith. Johnson’s father, called Dango, reopened Fitzgerald’s at its present location. Dave Johnson’s son, Sean, age 20, works in his father’s businesses when he’s home from his studies at Florida State.
A website for Dave Johnson’s group of restaurants is under construction.