The last day of operations for Ritz’s on Jefferson Street was Aug. 4, but the original Ritz’s Lil’ Fryer on North Grand Avenue remains open.
“I don’t see that one going anywhere,” said Vicky Ritz, who owns the restaurant along with her husband, Curt Ritz. The couple opened Ritz’s Lil’ Fryer, 2148 North Grand Ave. East, in 1978, followed by Ritz’s at 700 W. Jefferson St. in 2001.
However, Ritz said that after years of operating two restaurants, plus a gaming parlor and rental properties, it was time to scale back. “I turned 65 on Saturday, and Curt’s already there and a bit ahead of me,” said Ritz. “It was time to step back a little bit.”
Ritz said there were also staffing challenges, with not enough employees to cover both locations. “We couldn’t keep our kitchen staffed properly, and it was killing my employees, working them so many hours with no days off,” she said. Ritz, who is retired from the Department of Public Health, said she had been working as a server to help with coverage.
Earlier this year, the Ritzes listed the Jefferson property for sale with Sarah Quattrin Coombe of KW Capital.
“We thought it would sell pretty quickly; it’s a prime location,” said Ritz. However, when no buyer materialized, the couple decided to focus their efforts on the North Grand restaurant.
“No one lost their job,” said Ritz, who noted that the staff is now all working out of the North Grand location. “Everybody gets a day off now, and some of them might get two. I was even able to take myself off the schedule.”
After decades in the restaurant business, Ritz said she is looking forward to scaling back. “You have to live it, or it’s not going to work. That’s what we’ve done our whole lives. But it’s time to step back and not work so hard.”