Silvio's Organic Pizza hopes to attract late-night crowd with live music, dancing
Catia and Silvio Medoro in 2010, shortly after they finished the expansion and renovations at their restaurant.
Janet Miller | For AnnArbor.com
The family-owned restaurant opened in 2005 at 715 N. University Ave. as a hole-in-the-wall pizzeria, and since then, Silvio’s has expanded to become a full-service restaurant with seating for 75 customers.
Silvio’s has now started hosting live bands and dance nights, in an attempt to get more people through the doors.
Owner Silvio Medoro recently applied for a dance permit and outdoor service permit that will allow the restaurant to serve alcohol on its patio.
He said he hopes to make reggae nights and tango nights regular events at Silvio’s. They also have different bands playing in the restaurant, including jazz and folk artists.
The restaurant is known for its organic pizza and pasta and homemade Italian cuisine. Medoro uses mostly local ingredients, including items from his own garden.
As Silvio’s celebrates six years in business, manager Georgia Richardson-Melody said they are trying to find “new and diverse” ways to use the restaurant’s expanded space.
The restaurant moved into the adjacent space once occupied by Beanie June’s clothing boutique in 2010.
“With businesses struggling and people not spending money as much anymore,” she said, “we’re trying to figure out what niches we can fill.”
“I know that we are trying to cater to the student population and just make this a fun place,” she continued. “We have an environment that is both good for studying during the day and dancing, or listening to music.”
Medoro said that since last year’s expansion, business has improved, but he is now focused on improving the restaurant’s customer service.
“We are transforming the service and pretty much the whole experience people have here at Silvio’s,” he said.
Lizzy Alfs is a business reporter for AnnArbor.com. Reach her at 734-623-2584 or email her at lizzyalfs@annarbor.com. Follow her on Twitter at http://twitter.com/lizzyalfs.
Comments
Dan Martin
Thu, Jul 5, 2012 : 1:18 p.m.
I used to love Silvio's Pizza, and Silvio is the nicest guy ever...but right around the time they expanded, the crust got bad. I had three pizzas in a row where the crust was wet, doughy and nearly raw on the top (beneath the toppings), and burnt on the bottom and edges. I had friends complaining to me because I recommended they go there, and it was the same concern. The pizza was wet, doughy, and soggy. I miss going there, because at its pinnacle it was the best pizza in town.
rusty shackelford
Fri, Oct 28, 2011 : 6:53 p.m.
I mean, my previous comment notwithstanding, I love Silvio's and this article makes me want to go there this weekend. But with passable service this place would be at least a weekly thing for me.
Patti Smith
Fri, Oct 28, 2011 : 6:12 p.m.
They have a very nice MI craft beer selection too, including Original Gravity (from Milan). :)
Ann E.
Fri, Oct 28, 2011 : 5:49 p.m.
The food at Silvio's is wonderful. I had delicious pumpkin ravioli with a creamy marinara sauce last night after not having had a chance to stop in for a few weeks. As with any restaurant where food is cooked at the time it is ordered, if I am in a hurry, I usually have success telling the waiter my timetable and asking what menu items are possible to order and receive quickly. I've found the wait staff to be relaxed, genuine and eager to please. The fresh ingredients and varied menu tempt one to eat there quite often.
Rich
Fri, Oct 28, 2011 : 5:24 p.m.
Service is _painfully_ slow. Hopefully they are listening. Everyone at our office has stopped going there because of the slow service. A 30 minute lunch should not take 1.5 hours and require us to keep asking, "where is our food?" and then following up with the staff because we are missing items.
Wolf's Bane
Fri, Oct 28, 2011 : 12:52 p.m.
Food is great, but he has only family working there and friends of friends. Not a good business practice. Not sure late-night slices and bands are going to make a difference.
Ann E.
Fri, Oct 28, 2011 : 6 p.m.
There was a terrific jazz band there last night.
Jerome Blue
Fri, Oct 28, 2011 : 12:25 p.m.
I ate there once or twice when they opened and they had the worst pizza I had ever had. Give me Cottage Inn any day.
Wolf's Bane
Fri, Oct 28, 2011 : 12:53 p.m.
That's because Silvio's is authentic Napoli inspired Pizza. You should really go to Italy and try the food sometime. Authentic Italian goes way beyond Chef-Boy-Ardee!
rusty shackelford
Fri, Oct 28, 2011 : 11:45 a.m.
I'm glad Silvio recognizes his place has a customer service problem. I love the food there, but trying to actually GET the food can be an extremely vexing experience. Honestly I would go there much more frequently if it didn't take 20+ minutes sometimes just to get a few slices into my hands. If there are even just 2 or 3 customers ahead of me, forget about it; it will take forever. The staff seems to be constantly moving around, trading duties minute to minute for no discernible purpose like some kind of Marx Brothers style comedy. They need to learn how to deal with a lunch rush and also need to make it more clear what their alcohol offerings are and when in the process, exactly, I'm supposed to order it.
UM owns
Fri, Oct 28, 2011 : 1:39 p.m.
I agree. There are times when I feel like getting a slice of something that is a little off the beaten path -- which Silvio's generally offers with all of their specialty pizzas. I head in there, and then balk when I realize that it's not worth it. Once I went in at 5pm when there are no other customers at all, and they had ZERO slices available -- they said I could order a personal pizza, but that would take 20 minutes. I always end up walking two blocks to NYPD, where the slices are abundant and the service is quick!
DBH
Fri, Oct 28, 2011 : 11:58 a.m.
Apart from the alcohol issue (with which I have had no experience at Silvio's), I can confirm everything else in your comment. They may be paying more attention to details these days. At their last Health Dept. inspection on 8/16/11, they had no critical violations and 4 noncritical violations, a significant improvement from past inspections. I wish them good luck; they have the potential to offer an excellent product: food, service, and now entertainment. I hope, though, that the music is not too loud. That would drive me away.