February 3, 2003
New restaurant coming soon to Quarry Plaza
By Louise Donahue
The search for a new restaurant for Quarry Plaza at UCSC is over, and
the winner is Joe's Pizza and Subs.
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Joe and Georgette Hammana, who
run Joe's Pizza and Subs on Water Street in Santa Cruz, plan to
open their new restaurant at UCSC within a month.
Photo:
Louise Donahue |
Owner Joe Hammana plans to open his UCSC operation within a month.
The eclectic menu will range from pizza and hamburgers to
vegan dishes
and Middle Eastern specialtiesand Hammana promises a
few surprises,
as well.
The new restaurant will also be called Joe's Pizza and Subs, and will
include a vegan menu, as well as more than 50 kinds of New York-style
sub sandwiches and daily specials.
Hammana's ability to suit widely varying tastes was a major selling
point for Joe's. An online survey this past fall revealed often-conflicting
preferences: some wanted fast food, others wanted a vegan or vegetarian
restaurant, while still others favored Asian or other ethnic food.
"I believe he'll be a great fit for the campus," said Ruth
Schmitz, a graduate student and a member of the search committee that
unanimously chose Joe's. The restaurant takes the place of the Whole
Earth, which closed in the summer of 2002 due to financial
difficulties.
"He makes the absolute best vegan pizza I've ever had
in my life,"
said Schmitz. She was initially concerned that Joe's might
be too mainstream,
but changed her mind after the committee visited Joe's, at 736 Water
Street in Santa Cruz.
Reasonable prices, a customer-oriented approach, and
financial stability
were other considerations for the committee, Schmitz said. Committee
members included undergraduate and graduate students, faculty, staff,
and administrative representatives. The restaurant is part
of the Graduate
Student Commons.
Known by customers for his personal touch, Hammana said
"the smile
is always there" and that he does whatever he can to
keep customers
happy. He and his wife, Georgette, who creates many of the recipes at
Joe's, will continue to operate the Water Street restaurant.
Hammana has many student customers at his current
location, and anticipates
no problem satisfying student tastes. "Anyone who comes in here,
he's hooked," Hammana said. He joked that students may
miss their
parents' love while away at college, but if they eat at Joe's, they
won't miss their parents' cooking.
The Hammanas have plenty of experience in the business.
They have been
at the Water Street location since 1986, and worked in the
Hammana family
restaurant in Beirut, Lebanon, before moving to the United
States.
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