Sorrento’s to celebrate 50 years in downtown Lincoln with ribbon cut on Friday evening

[June 04, 2019]  On Friday evening at 4 p.m., the community is invited to join Lisa and Jim Drew, their family and staff for a special ribbon cutting. The Drews are celebrating the 50th anniversary of Sorrento’s, a very popular downtown pizzeria.

Today Sorrento’s is located at 614 Broadway, but the restaurant has been located in a number of locations in its 50 year history, all in the downtown area, and most on Broadway Street.

The restaurant first opened in 1969 at the corner of Pekin and Chicago Streets, but stayed there for a very short period of time. In the same year, the restaurant moved to 521 Broadway Street in what would be the first of three Broadway locations. The first location was in the 500 block of the main road through downtown Lincoln. Then it moved on to the 600 block and became the neighbor of the Lincoln YMCA. The business remained there for 15 years. Then just over a year ago, the Drew’s took advantage of a new opportunity, and moved their business to the center of the block where it is now, in the former MKS Jewelers store.

The new location afforded the Drews’ an opportunity to expand their floor space to accommodate more patrons, and they also had the opportunity to polish the image of the restaurant with a fresh Tuscany-style interior design. The restaurant at its new location enjoyed a soft opening last year in the summer, then hosted a ribbon cut and grand opening event in November of last year.

During the November ribbon cut, Lisa Drew offered up a little bit of the history of the restaurant.

“It was 1969 when the first Sorrento’s opened in Lincoln near the corner of Broadway and Pulaski Streets. The Curcuru family was looking for a town that was not too large, but large enough to host their desire to open their own restaurant. Sorrento’s occupied that corner for nearly 30 years. When Sam, my late husband and original owner of Sorrentos, passed in 1998 we moved the business to 521 Broadway and occupied that space for six years. We then moved to 604 Broadway and were there for 15 years. We had not thought that we would move again but, when MKS decided to close and this building became available, we decided that it would be a perfect location for us to expand and design a space that could meet all of our needs as a restaurant.”

Ribbons cuts celebrating businesses throughout Logan County are offered are offered for a number of reasons including longevity. As someone recently said, Illinois on the whole is not a business friendly environment right now. When we see a business that has hung in there through thick and thin and not only survived, but thrived for 50 years that is a noteworthy accomplishment.

Please join Lisa and Jim Drew on Friday and help them celebrate a big anniversary. Hope to see you all there!

[Nila Smith]