Viron Rondo Osteria
Posted by estiator at 9 November, at 11 : 27 AM Print
COVER STORY
Famed restaurateur Viron Rondos creates a Mediterranean dining oasis in Cheshire, CT.
ΕΠΙΜΕΛΕΙΑ ΜΑΡΙΑΝΝΑ ΣΤΕΦΑΝΟΥ
Here you are, lolling in a Mediterranean garden, lush, colorful, soothing. As you sit at a perfectly appointed dining table, you are lulled further as a glass of excellent wine and a bowl of fresh, Greek Kalamata and Conserviela olives are placed in front of you, with a basket of warm bread and extra-virgin Greek olive oil. You peruse a mouthwatering menu, and your heart and head are on vacation as an attentive staff tends to every dining need.
Welcome to Viron Rondo Osteria in Cheshire, Connecticut. The award-winning restaurant is owned by Viron Rondos, an award winner himself, who began his career in well-known restaurants in Greece and then went on to the United States, where he honed even further by working in some of the most prestigious restaurants in New York City. Eight years ago, he opened his charming restaurant, which has become a destination dining mecca for guests who appreciate fine food, fine drinks, and a setting, both inside and out, that have been praised by food, architectural, and trade publications throughout Connecticut and beyond.
“I think it is what I always dreamed of doing,” says Rondos as he surveys his busy dining rooms and patio and terrace dining areas, which are sophisticated and welcoming, and buzzing with energy. “I can’t remember ever wanting to do anything else. This was my destiny.”
Located on Route 10 on the Cheshire/Southington town line, the 15,000+ square-foot restaurant includes a magnificent Mediterranean-inspired patio, vintage 14-foot, 1,500 pound midcentury chandelier-crowned bar, and a main dining room with an Italian stone fireplace, fine art, and impressive temperature-con- trolled wine room. Oversize glass vases are filled with noteworthy fresh flower arrangements, and the vibe is New York City mixed with Mediterranean.
The outdoor setting is stunning. A full-time gardener tends to flowers, shrubs, hardscapes, and evergreen vignettes. A beautiful wraparound, sculpted stone wall surrounds the outdoor area that includes terraced dining areas, a magnificent outdoor bar, and architectural touches that make it one of the restaurant’s most popular seasonal areas to dine and socialize.
Beyond the interior and exterior settings, though, is the food. Italian-inspired, Rondos knows that a restaurant must offer the best of the best to be successful, and he and his staff work toward that end every day. The menu, executed by executive chef Thomas Crawford and chef de cuisine Bladimir Lopez, boasts fan favorites like the paper-thin fried zucchini and eggplant, aka “My Mother’s Chips”; his famed Greek salad with fresh tomatoes from March Farms in Bethlehem; cheeses from Arethusa in Litchfield; seafood from Stonington and Port Judith; organic Bell & Evans chicken; steaks; pasta; and pizza from a specially built, imported pizza oven. Classic and con- temporary cocktails are created with equal care, and seasonal items are always featured on both the food and drink menus.
Ask the affable veteran restaurateur what is most important when it comes to his business, and he is quick to answer, “Perfection.”
“I want every guest who leaves here to be happy,” says Rondos. “I expect to serve perfect food by a well-trained staff in a setting that is as near perfect as I can make it,” he says. “I learned about the importance of how food and hospitality intertwine from my mother in Greece. Every weekend our home was the place for fabulous dinners made with fresh ingredients from my mother’s garden. I remember that and my mother’s graciousness and use it as the ruler for the way I want my business to be.”
The ambitious businessman’s efforts have paid off. Besides being one of Connecticut’s most celebrated restaurants, the business world has also taken notice. He recently received the federal Small Business Administration’s “Small Business Person of the Year” award for Connecticut. The Connecticut Restaurant Association honored him as being a regional “Restaurant of the Year.” Recently named “Entrepreneur of the Year” by the Waterbury Regional Chamber of Commerce, he has also won awards for his wine collections and the architectural components of his restaurant.
His contributions to a host of nonprofits and those in need during the Covid crisis have also been recognized by a variety of organizations. “That’s how I was raised,” says Rondos, the married father of three. “You share your success. You do for those in need. When I can, I do, and that included during Covid when we were lucky enough to be able to keep our business going and help our staff, frontline workers, and others by offering thousands of meals and assistance.”
Rarely, if ever, out of sight during restaurant hours, Rondos is known for his energy and his sincerity as he multitasks on his restaurant floor not only as the welcoming owner, but pitching in to serve meals, clear tables, and chat with guests, all with the goal of making the dining experience unforgettably fulfilling and happy.
“I love what I do and do my best each and every day,” says Rondos, who is as humble as he is successful. “I don’t do it alone. I have a great staff, and I make sure that every day I learn from others about how best to make my business the best it can be. I am old-fashioned in that way. I don’t take shortcuts, and I don’t expect to sit back. I strive for perfection and learn from mistakes,” he adds. “But I feel good about my restaurant, and I think its popularity reflects the commitment we all have here at Viron Rondo Osteria.”
