Geno's a Staple of Italian Eating in Mansfield

John Spiezio has been in the restaurant business for almost all his life, and has been bringing his knowledge and expertise to Mansfield for over 41 years.

He started at Geno’s, then known as Jack’s, as a busboy and worked there for 10 years for the Falocitcle brothers.

“I just learned over the years, reading different articles and taking a couple of courses,” he said. “It came to me just by wanting to learn, being involved in the business and growing with it.”

He said in 1981 his parents bought the restaurant from the brothers and named it Geno’s. He said his father ran it for about 20 years before he and his wife, Cathy, took over.

He said his favorite part of the business is preparing the food, working with new recipes and making sure he can do the best job he possibly can.

 “We have Italian, seafood, steaks and we do a special prime rib on weekends," he said. "It’s a sports bar, we run appetizers and whatnot for games.”

He added that the restaurant also offers dinner specials and has live entertainment on the weekends.

Spiezio is a life long resident of Mansfield and has won many awards for his soups and chowders. He said everything he makes in the restaurant is what he cooks at home. He said he feels the business has allowed him to get to know his customers and the town in a very unique way.

“I love getting to know them, it makes people feel comfortable and welcome when they come here,” he said. “We get a lot of new customers… I know if they try us they definitely come back. We’ve developed a relationship in the community and word of mouth is the best advertisement.”

Spiezio said his employees are the core of his business, as he can’t be at the restaurant all the time (as much as he said he tries).

“I’m very proud of my staff, “ he said.  “I appreciate the hard work my employees put into the business to make it a success for 32 years. Everyone here takes a lot of pride in what they do and care about the business.”