Owner of Salerno's on the Fox in St. Charles credits staff, family for 48-year-old restaurant's longevity

With up to 100 people crowding the bar at Salerno's on the Fox for former St. Charles Mayor Sue Klinkhamer's 70th birthday party, it would have been easy for the restaurant staff to get a little testy trying to keep pace.

After all, it was a recent Sunday night at the popular Italian restaurant at 320 N. Second St. in St. Charles, so the dining room was also quite busy. But the staff was working hard and fast, and each employee was as pleasant as if you were the only customer to serve.

To hear Salerno's owner, Joe Salerno, tell it, that's been the secret sauce behind keeping the restaurant going since his father, Adam, who opened the restaurant in St. Charles in 1975, passed away in early 2022.

“The staff I have now has been and will remain, whether they leave or not, the best staff that Salerno's on the Fox has ever seen,” Joe said. “What they do for me is unbelievable because they see me working just as hard as they are, and it has been a tremendous help — I would not be here today if not for the staff in the front and back (of the restaurant).”

This is saying a lot, even though Joe has been managing the restaurant since about 2011, taking on the top role in knowing Adam would not be around forever.

“His (Adam's) voice always stays in my head, no doubt about that,” Joe said. “But his voice was always in my head when he was alive,” he laughed.

But even Adam couldn't have foreseen the challenges of the COVID pandemic lockdown and a new minimum wage law that drove up labor costs to the point where most restaurants had to cut back on staff.

“I ask myself, what would he do if he were in my shoes, but in all honesty, he was never in these shoes,” Joe acknowledged. “This was something he didn't have to experience because we didn't look at labor costs as much as this in the past.”

Joe didn't want to single out certain staff members as the key to keeping the restaurant going, mainly because he didn't want to leave anyone out.

“They are all great,” Joe said. “I choose to stay in this business because of this staff and to keep it going as best we can.”

It doesn't hurt that the food is excellent at Salerno's, and the pizza has long been an area favorite — and likely enjoys a similar reputation in other Salerno's locations in Berwyn (the first the family opened in 1966) and Chicago.

Joe doesn't like taking credit for the positive impact Salerno's has had for several decades, saying his mother Isabella had as much to do with it, or more, than he or Adam.

“She paid the bills, took care of the books and would tell us where we could spend our advertising dollars and how much,” Joe said.

His wife Rosa has also been a key player, handling marketing and advising Joe on any changes he's contemplating. Their daughter, Isabella, works part-time at the restaurant.

It's a family affair and, combined with a loyal, hardworking staff, it fuels a solid catering and carryout business in addition to the restaurant.

Sue Klinkhamer and her husband, Dan, have been longtime patrons of the restaurant. Sue was known to stop by for lunch often during her years as mayor (1997 to 2005) to chat with Adam and enjoy the Italian fare.

“Because we were both Italian, we had a great connection to begin with,” Sue said in a Daily Herald report when Adam passed. “He really took a gamble in coming out to the middle of nowhere at the time.”

Dan, who organized his wife's recent birthday party, has scheduled many family celebrations at the Salerno's bar, patio or dining room.

“We have lots of fond memories in that restaurant with Adam and Joe, from weddings, graduations, anniversaries, election kickoffs and parties,” Dan said.

Many Salerno patrons have pointed to the refurbishing of the bar and outdoor patio area next to the Fox River in the past year as big accomplishments for Joe.

Joe won't take full credit because, he said, Adam was in the middle of those development conversations and was well aware of what was coming next at the restaurant.

For Joe, his father is pretty much looking over his shoulder daily — because photos of him “are all over the dining room,” he said.

“Adam and his brothers had it harder than we did in starting the restaurants; we just have to keep it going,” Joe said.

And if that voice remains in his head, there is no reason to think Salerno's won't be pleasing its customers for a long time.

“Even if I come in early in the morning and am cleaning, you know he's right by you, saying, ‘Hey, you missed a spot,'” Joe said. “We have a lot of laughs about that.”

dheun@sbcglobal.net