It was a sad day when pontillo's shutdown it seemed like a Batavia landmark. I have to agree though if its not pontillo owned then it shouldnt have the name.
The people who own it should have changed the name all together, since the pontillo family stopped running it their food from what I have heard from MANY batavians say its not the same, not consistent. If they wanted to become successful in this town they should have duplicated the same ideas that was used by the family instead of re-inventing the wheel !
My husband & I Went there last week and walked out. The "hostess" was in a bad mood and barked at us right from the start. My husband simply said we will go someplace else and turned around. Realizing what just happened she tried to fake a smile...must be business is so good they can afford to be rude to customers.
Call it Pontillo's because it's just the name of a restaurant! The family reportedly has issues of all kinds, but the restaurant is going on and should carry the name - people come from all over the country (as former residents, tourists and visitors) looking for the Pontillo's experience. If that is what is bringing people to town - just let it go on. BUT PLEASE,keep the old Pontillo's product and service, let's skip over the last few years of the business after Mom & Pop passed.
Admittedly, I haven't devoted attention to the drama surrounding Batavia's pizza controversy. There are about 25 Pontillo's pizzerias from Churchville to Canandaigua. Whether any is owned by or employs anyone named 'Pontillo' seems irrelevant to the greater-Rochester pizza-buying public. Obviously, the Pontillo family at some point weighed family connection to name and/or profit and decided to include name rights with a franchising agreement. Why the Batavia restaurant is not part of the franchise- hence could not legally use the 'Pontillo' name -is likely a matter of choice by the current owner(s). Why the current owner(s) retain vestiges of the Pontillo legacy without the 'Pontillo' name- apparently they lack confidence in ability to attract a customer base without name-dropping. (Pun intended.)
It would seem that disassociation of the family name and business name is complete- all but in the minds of a few.
C.M., the Pontillo's in Rochester are the product of Anthony Pontillo wanting to expand and Sal Pontillo wanting to stay with just one location. Anthony went off to Rochester to start his chain. However, Dave Pontillo explained to me that all Pontillo locations are owned by family members or approved family friends. He said they are very careful about who the gets to open a Pontillo's.
As part of the agreement, Sal and his heirs retained exclusive rights to Genesee County.
Sue, I don't follow your logic -- there's nobody from the Pontillo family associated with Batavia's Original. It's owned by people that have no association with the Pontillo family outside of employing Sam for about a year. The Pontillo's name is a legal trademark of the Pontillo family in Rochester. The owners of Batavia's Original already were sued once on that point, which is why they changed the name.
Not impressed with it...went there on a Friday night about a month ago-place was easily half empty,short staffed.We had to wait 20-25 minutes to be seated......then where we were seated,we could watch the waitresses w/ bad attitudes, some were not happy with other servers,etc.,etc. So much for a quick sub....... better straighten their act out,or else the building will be empty before long....
You are kidding right? If you owned a business, ran it for over 60 years, put out a great product and created a loyal customer base, you would let some outfit take over, do whatever they wanted to do, WITH YOUR NAME ON THE SIGN?
When your name is directly attached to your business, the business reflects you personally. If you look at just the ads on The Batavian you'll people that are proud enough & willing to hang their name on the front of a building. What happens in that building or what they produce reflects directly on them & influences their reputation.
For someone to establish a business with a similar name to cause confusion & benefit from the real business's name is unfair. It may be a great business strategy but very unfair. That's why I wouldn't be allowed to open a "Wendie's" or "Tom Hortons"
The owners of Batavia Original got what they wanted....a few months with an illegal Pontillo's sign, a few more months with one Pontillo inside to make it look like the old days, & a lot of business from those of us that grew up with a tradition. We missed it. They fooled us into thinking it was back. We realized it wasn't the same.
I've found great alternatives with other LOCAL pizzerias that have a great product & a LOCAL name on the door. By the way......those owners also live here, work here, worship here, & spend their profits here.
It was a sad day when
It was a sad day when pontillo's shutdown it seemed like a Batavia landmark. I have to agree though if its not pontillo owned then it shouldnt have the name.
The people who own it should
The people who own it should have changed the name all together, since the pontillo family stopped running it their food from what I have heard from MANY batavians say its not the same, not consistent. If they wanted to become successful in this town they should have duplicated the same ideas that was used by the family instead of re-inventing the wheel !
My husband & I Went there
My husband & I Went there last week and walked out. The "hostess" was in a bad mood and barked at us right from the start. My husband simply said we will go someplace else and turned around. Realizing what just happened she tried to fake a smile...must be business is so good they can afford to be rude to customers.
Call it Pontillo's because
Call it Pontillo's because it's just the name of a restaurant! The family reportedly has issues of all kinds, but the restaurant is going on and should carry the name - people come from all over the country (as former residents, tourists and visitors) looking for the Pontillo's experience. If that is what is bringing people to town - just let it go on. BUT PLEASE,keep the old Pontillo's product and service, let's skip over the last few years of the business after Mom & Pop passed.
Admittedly, I haven't devoted
Admittedly, I haven't devoted attention to the drama surrounding Batavia's pizza controversy. There are about 25 Pontillo's pizzerias from Churchville to Canandaigua. Whether any is owned by or employs anyone named 'Pontillo' seems irrelevant to the greater-Rochester pizza-buying public. Obviously, the Pontillo family at some point weighed family connection to name and/or profit and decided to include name rights with a franchising agreement. Why the Batavia restaurant is not part of the franchise- hence could not legally use the 'Pontillo' name -is likely a matter of choice by the current owner(s). Why the current owner(s) retain vestiges of the Pontillo legacy without the 'Pontillo' name- apparently they lack confidence in ability to attract a customer base without name-dropping. (Pun intended.)
It would seem that disassociation of the family name and business name is complete- all but in the minds of a few.
C.M., the Pontillo's in
C.M., the Pontillo's in Rochester are the product of Anthony Pontillo wanting to expand and Sal Pontillo wanting to stay with just one location. Anthony went off to Rochester to start his chain. However, Dave Pontillo explained to me that all Pontillo locations are owned by family members or approved family friends. He said they are very careful about who the gets to open a Pontillo's.
As part of the agreement, Sal and his heirs retained exclusive rights to Genesee County.
Sue, I don't follow your logic -- there's nobody from the Pontillo family associated with Batavia's Original. It's owned by people that have no association with the Pontillo family outside of employing Sam for about a year. The Pontillo's name is a legal trademark of the Pontillo family in Rochester. The owners of Batavia's Original already were sued once on that point, which is why they changed the name.
Not impressed with it...went
Not impressed with it...went there on a Friday night about a month ago-place was easily half empty,short staffed.We had to wait 20-25 minutes to be seated......then where we were seated,we could watch the waitresses w/ bad attitudes, some were not happy with other servers,etc.,etc. So much for a quick sub....... better straighten their act out,or else the building will be empty before long....
S. Ferringer: You are
S. Ferringer:
You are kidding right? If you owned a business, ran it for over 60 years, put out a great product and created a loyal customer base, you would let some outfit take over, do whatever they wanted to do, WITH YOUR NAME ON THE SIGN?
You are kidding right?
When your name is directly
When your name is directly attached to your business, the business reflects you personally. If you look at just the ads on The Batavian you'll people that are proud enough & willing to hang their name on the front of a building. What happens in that building or what they produce reflects directly on them & influences their reputation.
For someone to establish a business with a similar name to cause confusion & benefit from the real business's name is unfair. It may be a great business strategy but very unfair. That's why I wouldn't be allowed to open a "Wendie's" or "Tom Hortons"
The owners of Batavia Original got what they wanted....a few months with an illegal Pontillo's sign, a few more months with one Pontillo inside to make it look like the old days, & a lot of business from those of us that grew up with a tradition. We missed it. They fooled us into thinking it was back. We realized it wasn't the same.
I've found great alternatives with other LOCAL pizzerias that have a great product & a LOCAL name on the door. By the way......those owners also live here, work here, worship here, & spend their profits here.