Treat People How They Want To Be Treated: Key To P.J. Skidoos' Success

FAIRFAX CITY, VA — For more than 46 years, P.J. Skidoos in Fairfax City has come to represent what most people would call a "hometown restaurant."

From its Mother's Day brunches and Fourth of July fireworks watch parties to its karaoke nights and private events, the restaurant located at 9908 Fairfax Blvd. has long been a place for people to gather in the city to eat, laugh, drink, dance and maybe even sing a little song.

"Anybody who says anything about P.J. Skidoos is we treat people like people want to be treated," owner Cosmos Bells told Patch recently. "We have a wonderful restaurant with good values. Wonderful food. And that stands out."

Bells has been in the food business all of his life. In the 1970s, he was the owner of the Black Baron restaurant in Annandale, which served classic American fare.

In 1977, Bells teamed up with Stephen Thomas and Pip Thomas, two Georgetown bartenders, to transform the Black Baron's expansion in Fairfax City to what would become one of the area's most popular restaurants.

"We turned the Black Baron West into a P.J. Skidoos operation," he said, adding that the new name was chosen to catch people's attention. "Back in the 1920s and '30s, carnivals used to put banners up to draw crowds and get people there. We named the restaurant P.J. Skidoos and it's been working ever since."

Bells, who now owns and runs the restaurant with his nephew, Dimitri Paraskevopoulos, considers the restaurant's commitment to community as a key part of its ongoing success.

"We have banquet facilities and do banquets and party rooms," he said. "We do commonwealth attorney's meetings. The chamber of commerce use to met here. We've been part of the community for years and years."

The restaurant is open for all major holidays, including St. Patrick's Day, Mother's Day, Easter, July 4th, and Halloween, offering themed brunches and happy hours.

When a local police officer was killed two years ago, P.J. Skidoos hosted a fundraiser for the officer's family.

"He had a 5-year-old kid," Bells said. "We contributed money to them. We gave them a $5,000 check, just a little thing. We participate in the community. We want to be part of the community and they support us totally."

Walking through the P.J. Skidoos dining room during a recent lunch hour, two Fairfax City police officers could be seen ordering food, while a group of ham radio operators were meeting in the restaurant's outdoor dining space.

"My motto is, 'I treat you like I want to be treated,'" Bells said. "If you do that, you're going to be a very successful guy."