The Trevi Fountain is a landmark in the city of Rome, Italy. Its namesake bar and restaurant in New Sudbury is a bit of a landmark, too, having served customers for more than 44 years in its current location.
Maurice Theoret is the current owner, chef and manager of the Trevi on Lasalle Boulevard and has been for 13 years now. He said the original fountain is at the Ramsey Lake home of the previous owner, Italo Polano, but the restaurant is still going strong.
The Trevi has become a home for many regulars over the years, and specializes in a wide menu of items that are all homemade.
“We make our own meatballs, cheese sticks, chicken fingers, pulled pork, pasta meat sauce and even grind our own burgers from the whole chuck with no fillers,” Theoret said.
Theoret even has a burger named in his honour. The Moe Burger features mushrooms, onion, havarti cheese, Japanese mayonnaise and bacon. There is also the El Torres Burger (a.k.a. the Raging Bull Burger) with carmalized jalapenos, chipotle sauce and cheddar cheese.
Theoret worked in kitchens all over the world before returning back to Sudbury to purchase the Trevi, he said. He remembered the bar was downtown as a young boy, but it had relocated to New Sudbury during the years he lived away from the Nickel City.
“In 1975, I moved to B.C., then went outside Canada for 25 years to places in Asia like Hong Kong then Indonesia, the Philippines, Algeria and back to Hong Kong before return to Sudbury during the global financial crash in 2009,” Theoret said.
When he bought the bar, Theoret joked that it came with a kitchen worker who was as old as some of the furniture.
Shawn Giambattista has cooked at the Trevi for 31 years now.
“I moved here from Espanola to go to college and was going back home on weekends to work. I realized I needed a job here and given I frequented the Trevi for the chicken wings, I decided to drop off a resume and was hired the next day,” Giambattista said.
With a team like Theoret and Giambattista, the restaurant also specializes in something called “trainwreck catering.”
“It’s exactly what it sounds like,” said Theoret. “When a trainwreck occurs, or fires or floods, a call goes out for us to prepare thousands of catered meals that are delivered to those who need it.”
He’s not sure how and when the connection was made, but they always get the call out to support these devastating situations with comfort foods.
After 40 some years, Theoret has made some renovations to the restaurant with high top bar tables and stools, as well as some fresh paint.
He’s also worked hard to bring in entertainment like comedy nights, belly dancers, Mariachi nights, karaoke, impersonators and porketta bingos. The restaurant also features a horse betting area in the back of the restaurant.
On March 1, the Trevi is featuring a performance from Lazo Finn, a Juno-award winning reggae artist. Theoret also has a special evening planned this coming Saturday featuring an Elvis impersonator and a special Valentine’s Day meal.
To follow the Trevi Restaurant, visit Facebook and Instagram. You can also check out the website, TreviBarandGrill.com.
Anastasia Rioux is a writer in Greater Sudbury. Let’s Eat! is made possible by our Community Leaders Program.