Author, Chet Scire: Memoir, The Other Side of the Menu – Book Revue

Author Chet Scire will speak and sign her memoir, The Other Side of the Menu.

I had just learned that my husband burned his neck and chest with hot boiling water. He needed to get to the hospital immediately. After convincing him he had to go, his friend drove him. With a dining room with several tables of customers, and customers at the bar, what was I going to do? Ronnie was the only cook.

After announcing to the customers that Ronnie was injured, most of the customers decided to stay. Didn't they understand that there wasn't anyone in the kitchen to cook their food? Should I try and cook the food? How hard could it be?

I went into the kitchen, followed by the bartender and server. I began to set up the shrimp cocktail. We all stared at it for several seconds. We knew something was not right. It didn't look like the shrimp cocktail Ronnie would make. What did I do wrong? Was it the wrong shrimp? Was the shrimp bad? What was I to do next?

Felicetta (Chet) Sciré had no idea how much her life was going to change. After five years of raising her three children at home, she and her husband became the proud parents of a new baby: the Villa Sciré Italian Restaurant.

Over the next eleven years, Chet and her family would experience the highs and lows of owning their own business. From constant staff turnover to demanding customers to pressure from the mafia to pay for protection, the restaurant became more than a business. It became a way of life.

So take a seat, enjoy a canolli, and take a close look at the specials on The Other Side of the Menu.