When Joe Defelice opened his restaurant at 28560 Gratiot Ave in Roseville in January, he dubbed it Joe’s Italian Grill.
Earlier this month, he announced the Italian diner will no longer go by that trademark; instead it’s been renamed Joe’s On The Ave.
The fresh moniker is part of a slate of changes for the upstart eatery, situated a few blocks south of the Roseville Towne Center. The restaurant, which celebrated its grand opening Jan. 3, started serving breakfast over the weekend and Defelice plans to tweak the menu even further beginning today. Joe’s On The Ave. will also begin selling beer and wine in the near future.
While they’re working to add new shift managers as well, the most noticeable difference will be the new name, which the owners addressed on social media.
“There has been some confusion from the start with a couple of similarly named restaurants in the metro-Detroit area,” the restaurant explained. “It has resulted in customers placing orders at the wrong business, and generally created some confusion among patrons. Being the new kid on the block, altering our name seemed like the logical choice.”
Mimosa’s and Bloody Mary’s are among the new offerings. Breakfast will be served between 7-11 a.m. on Saturdays and Sundays, with a menu that features French toast, various omelettes, biscuits and gravy, pancakes and combos.
Popular Italian entrees like alfredo pasta, lasagna and spaghetti will remain on the lunch and dinner menu. Some of the appetizers, sandwiches and burgers will be swapped out as the restaurant started introducing new specials March 28.
“With any new restaurant, the first year or so will have adjustments to the menu,” Defelice said. “Not everything is the hit we expect it to be, or the cost to produce it makes it impossible to sell, and that is just part of starting out.
“We are not a chain restaurant that receives a menu from corporate, our chefs design and prepare each and every dish that leaves the kitchen,” he added. “They take pride in what they produce while also trying to appeal to an infinite number of preferences.”
