Staunton icon Marino's Lunch gets new lease on life. The restaurant is set to reopen in 2024.

STAUNTON – Felicia Sheets was 15 when she got her first job in the restaurant business. Her love for restaurants has just grown from there. Since that first job, the Augusta County resident has dreamed of owning her own restaurant, looking for the right opportunity over the years. She never really found the right fit until now.

This March, Sheets and her husband, Christopher, will be reopening Marino's Lunch on North Augusta Street in Staunton. She said her family even has a history at the restaurant because it was her grandmother's favorite spot to eat and her dad used to accompany her for many a lunch at Marino's.

"My husband and I absolutely fell in love with Marino’s and the nostalgia of the history this special place holds," Sheets said.

Victor and Nathalie Meyer bought Marino's Lunch in 2018, reopening the legendary restaurant — known as much for its music jam sessions as for its food — in April 2022. But COVID, plus a lack of help, ended up forcing the Meyers to close at the end of that year. It remained closed for all of 2023.

The business first opened in 1917 as a grocery store and a decade later the Marino family came from Italy, settling in Staunton, where they bought the store. The family turned it into a restaurant and ran it for three generations until 2018 when the Meyers bought it.

After the Meyers closed it, they began looking for someone to lease and reopen the restaurant. With both working full-time jobs, it wasn't something the Staunton couple could do themselves.

"We are thrilled that Felicia sees that same potential that we saw, and has stepped in," Victor Meyer said. "Institutions are fragile. They need courageous people to step in and make a difference. Felicia is such a person."

Meyer said COVID changed the restaurant industry forever and it will take someone like Sheets, who has the right character and experience, to make Marino's successful.

"We will be there to provide support to her whenever she needs it," he said, "but Marino’s is hers to run successfully and we’re sure that she’ll do a fine job."

Sheets, who graduated from Riverheads High School and James Madison University, said there is just something about the nostalgia of the American diner that she's fallen in love with over the years. She thinks Marino's is the perfect spot to bring that experience back to Staunton.

She plans to offer breakfast, lunch and dinner options, and operate Tuesday through Saturday. Breakfast will be served 7 to 11 a.m. and a full menu will be offered from 11 a.m. until 9 p.m.

"Menu is still a work in progress," she said, "but I will have Marino's signature items, with a great selection of burgers and hotdogs, starters, handhelds, salads, flat bread pizza, pastas, etc."

There will also be blue plate specials offered.

Music lovers, don't fear, because Sheets is planning to bring back jam sessions on Tuesdays and Fridays until 10 p.m.

"One of the things that we all agree upon is the importance of the Tuesday and Friday jam sessions," Meyer said. "It’s what gives Marino’s its soul, and why some folks call it 'Church.'"

Sheets has experience in every facet of the restaurant business, from the front door to the kitchen. She's managed corporate-owned establishments and locally-owned restaurants. Sheets knows the restaurant business isn't easy, but she thinks the experience she brings has made her well-rounded, something she will need to succeed at Marino's.

"I grew up in Staunton and have many fond memories," Sheets said. "It is a beautiful city, and I am excited to be part of its unique culture.  It's just a special place for me:"

Sheets plans to carry on the tradition of Marino's while giving it her own spin. She said the patrons at previous restaurants have always been like a second family to her and it will be no different in Staunton.

"This is exciting for me and my family," Sheets said. "It's my time to do my thing. I have worked so hard for many years to get here and I am beyond grateful that we landed at Marino's."

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— Patrick Hite is a reporter at The News Leader. Story ideas and tips always welcome. Contact Patrick (he/him/his) at phite@newsleader.com and follow him on Twitter @Patrick_Hite. Subscribe to us at newsleader.com

This article originally appeared on Staunton News Leader: Marino's Lunch to reopen in Staunton with a full menu and jam sessions