By Susan Elise Campbell
A new eatery in Warrensburg has brought a taste of home back to 3915 Main St.
Eight months after opening at a different site, Sulla Terra Bakery & Bistro moved from “a tiny place down the street” to where Bill’s Diner had been a long-time local favorite, according to owner April Fiorentino.
“The diner had been out of commission for three years but wasn’t for sale when I opened the bakery,” said Fiorentino.
But her shop grew so quickly that she brought on a business partner and co-owner, Courtney Sprague, at the time of relocation and subsequent expansion from bakery to bistro.
Fiorentino is a former state worker who went on to work for a dental office. Later she became manager of Lizzie Keays Restaurant in Warrensburg when she “didn’t want to be in an office anymore” and stayed there for 10 years, she said.
It took some time to renovate the new space, but the family and friends who helped were eager “to reuse and refresh the space that has meant a lot to people who are still here,” she said.
They removed paneling and found tongue and groove underneath, which Fiorentino said “along with our family & close friends, we sanded, painted, and put the tongue & grove up as ship lap.”
“The old diner had folding tables at one time and a little window to put food through from the kitchen,” she said. “Now there is a big window and instead of the old counter, we have a high table in the middle of the bistro.”
“Old gentlemen, farmers and loggers used to sit on stools around a big table,” said Fiorentino. “Now we have a memorial wall over in one corner with a stool that is originally from the counter.”
Someone donated an old tin roof that has become a tin ceiling, she said. There are historic and “typical diner pictures” hanging on the walls.
Sulla terra means “down to earth” in the Italian language, Fiorentino said. “I liked the name Down to Earth Apothecary Café but thought it too long.”
The concept for the food came from Fiorentino assessing what kind of menu items patrons couldn’t already find locally.
“I didn’t want to do a sandwich others were doing, so I did my research and came up with sandwiches that played on those other items,” she said. “People like my flavors, so much so I have influenced others to open shops and have very similar flavor profiles and concepts.”
“There is nothing typical about our menu,” said Fiorentino. “Like the quiche is a deep dish quiche.”
“Customers say the Italian sandwiches and Cuban sandwiches are the best they ever had,” she said. “There is a pastrami melt and sausage and gravy with our special twists. And some customers tell us we’re not charging enough.”
Sulla Terra is open five days a week, closed Wednesdays and Sundays, and only open until 5 p.m. to encourage ordering food to-go.
“I do the majority of the cooking with Courtney, and we are trying to hire more help,” Fiorentino said. “When you’re working 16 hours a day you need some time to relax with family and energize. That’s our biggest challenge.”
Evenings they do not put out a dinner menu but have themes instead. Monday is Mexican night and Tuesday is burger night. Throwback Thursday nods to the old Bill’s Diner menu, Fiorentino said. Friday is reserved for prime rib, seafood and homemade pasta. Saturday offers such in-house smoked items as brisket and smoky mac and cheese.
More information is available on FaceBook where online ordering will soon be available.