Hey everyone,
I would like to thank you for taking the time to visit this page and for your interest in helping me continue my Grandfather’s legacy. Here is a little bit of Toody’s history and mine for those of you who are unfamiliar.
1928, My grandfather Salvatore “Toody” Canto and his brother in law Paul “Paulie” D’amico were working at a grocery store called Tine’s Centre Spa in Wakefield MA. Located next door was Frank’s bakery. After receiving their daily delivery of bread, Paulie was inspired to cut one of the rolls lengthwise and layer sliced cold cut meats and veggies in between the two pieces of bread. A worker from a factory across the street happened to be watching what the gentlemen were doing and asked what they were making. Paulie held up his creation and exclaimed “I call it a submarine” inspired by its torpedo shape and with the influence of the war. The worker said he knew his co-workers would love to have one of them and asked if they could make an arrangement where at a certain time of day, he would stand in a specific window, holding up as many fingers as submarines that they wanted. The gentlemen held this arrangement for many years until 1945 when Toody had saved enough money to purchase the Centre Spa, phase out the grocery store and turn it into an entire restaurant based on their creation. Toody’s went through many changes throughout the years, even offering fried seafood dinners at one time. But one thing never changed, and that was the love and care that was put into everything they did. My Nana and Grampy made that place special and they made everyone that entered feel special too. The best memories I have of my childhood is the time I spent in Toody’s with all of my Aunts, Uncles and cousins. Every day after school I would hop on my bike and ride as fast as I could down to Toody’s and do whatever I could to help. My sweet Auntie Margie was the best. She had so much patience for me always being under her feet watching everything she did. I would get so excited when she would let me carry the completed orders up to the front to my cousins who I looked up to and was completely jealous of for being able to use the cash register and talk to the customers. Eventually I grew a bit and my cousin Ann Marie would teach me how to punch in the orders. That was so much fun! So simple but so intricate, and you couldn’t mess up a thing. So many combinations. Small or Large sub, hot or cold. Shells, spaghetti or ziti? Meatball, pork cutlet, chicken cutlet or sausage? American or provolone? Italian everything or no hots? Oil and seasoning? Steak and cheese with sauce or no sauce? Don’t mess it up. People will notice. But eventually I got the hang of it and was almost as speedy as Ann. As time passed and they grew up and moved on, it was finally my time to shine. I spent my high school years with my friends working and growing up there. It taught me the importance of hard work and dedication and gave me the work ethic I have today. It taught me that putting the extra effort in and going the extra mile make all the difference and I carried that with me throughout my life. I have always dreamed of having a restaurant of my own and as a kid I even wanted to own a diner at one point. As I grew older and so did my grandparents, I realized that they wouldn’t be able to work forever but I just thought that Toody’s would always be there. I never imagined life without it. I can still remember every little thing about the place, the sounds, the smells and even the places were crumbs would always gather or sauce would always splatter. I can still hear the squeak of the stool that Grampy sat on behind the counter on the “coffee side” as we called it. I remember the way he folded his newspaper and the cup of coins he kept under the counter to give us if we cleaned off a table or swept the floor. I can still hear the Pepsi cooler door slam shut and the sound of the cans being thrown in, the sound of the bread slicer cutting dozens upon dozens of sub rolls every morning and the sound of the tomato witch being slammed over and over. Anyone who has worked there in the past knows what I’m talking about. I still dream of the place every day and I know you do often as well. I want nothing more than to revive my Grandfather’s legend and carry on his legacy for as long as I can. I have spent my life working and studying the restaurant and hospitality industry. I have graduated from Le Cordon Bleu in Cambridge MA and also studied in Assisi Italy with Master Chef Enea Barbanera at La Locanda del Cardinale. I have a vast knowledge and deep passion for this field and I am fully confident that I will be able to deliver a warm and welcoming family restaurant showcasing all of the Toody’s classics that we all know, love and dream about. I have found the most incredible location that was destined for us. Just 2 miles from the original location in a large building suited for all your needs…a quick bite at the bar, a quality homemade meal, a nice family dinner, a birthday party, private function, fundraiser or benefit and even corporate and private catering. I will provide you with a place to make memories with your families and friends for decades to come just like Nana and Grampy did. I have put everything I have into making my dream come true but it costs more than I have available to me and opportunities like this don’t come around often. There is someone else trying to get in to the same location but they don’t have the vision and passion I have and they definitely won’t be able to provide you with six decades of history, memories and great food like I will. Plus they already own a bunch of other locations in other states so they don’t really need this one like I do! I know they aren’t dreaming and scheming like I am. I know it doesn’t keep them up at night or make their skin tingle when they think about it like it does for me. Even the owner of the business wants to see me in there and not the other guys but money talks and I can only keep him at bay for so long. That’s why I really need your help to spread the word and to help me raise enough money to take Toody’s to the level of greatness that I envision. Any amount of money helps and there are rewards and incentives for those who donate plus the reward of knowing that you will have access to Toody’s for as long as one can imagine. I truly appreciate the love and support you have shown my family throughout the years and I hope we can continue the tradition together. Thank you again, from the bottom of my heart, for helping a little girl’s dream come true. I look forward to serving you all in the very near future.
I would like to thank you for taking the time to visit this page and for your interest in helping me continue my Grandfather’s legacy. Here is a little bit of Toody’s history and mine for those of you who are unfamiliar.
1928, My grandfather Salvatore “Toody” Canto and his brother in law Paul “Paulie” D’amico were working at a grocery store called Tine’s Centre Spa in Wakefield MA. Located next door was Frank’s bakery. After receiving their daily delivery of bread, Paulie was inspired to cut one of the rolls lengthwise and layer sliced cold cut meats and veggies in between the two pieces of bread. A worker from a factory across the street happened to be watching what the gentlemen were doing and asked what they were making. Paulie held up his creation and exclaimed “I call it a submarine” inspired by its torpedo shape and with the influence of the war. The worker said he knew his co-workers would love to have one of them and asked if they could make an arrangement where at a certain time of day, he would stand in a specific window, holding up as many fingers as submarines that they wanted. The gentlemen held this arrangement for many years until 1945 when Toody had saved enough money to purchase the Centre Spa, phase out the grocery store and turn it into an entire restaurant based on their creation. Toody’s went through many changes throughout the years, even offering fried seafood dinners at one time. But one thing never changed, and that was the love and care that was put into everything they did. My Nana and Grampy made that place special and they made everyone that entered feel special too. The best memories I have of my childhood is the time I spent in Toody’s with all of my Aunts, Uncles and cousins. Every day after school I would hop on my bike and ride as fast as I could down to Toody’s and do whatever I could to help. My sweet Auntie Margie was the best. She had so much patience for me always being under her feet watching everything she did. I would get so excited when she would let me carry the completed orders up to the front to my cousins who I looked up to and was completely jealous of for being able to use the cash register and talk to the customers. Eventually I grew a bit and my cousin Ann Marie would teach me how to punch in the orders. That was so much fun! So simple but so intricate, and you couldn’t mess up a thing. So many combinations. Small or Large sub, hot or cold. Shells, spaghetti or ziti? Meatball, pork cutlet, chicken cutlet or sausage? American or provolone? Italian everything or no hots? Oil and seasoning? Steak and cheese with sauce or no sauce? Don’t mess it up. People will notice. But eventually I got the hang of it and was almost as speedy as Ann. As time passed and they grew up and moved on, it was finally my time to shine. I spent my high school years with my friends working and growing up there. It taught me the importance of hard work and dedication and gave me the work ethic I have today. It taught me that putting the extra effort in and going the extra mile make all the difference and I carried that with me throughout my life. I have always dreamed of having a restaurant of my own and as a kid I even wanted to own a diner at one point. As I grew older and so did my grandparents, I realized that they wouldn’t be able to work forever but I just thought that Toody’s would always be there. I never imagined life without it. I can still remember every little thing about the place, the sounds, the smells and even the places were crumbs would always gather or sauce would always splatter. I can still hear the squeak of the stool that Grampy sat on behind the counter on the “coffee side” as we called it. I remember the way he folded his newspaper and the cup of coins he kept under the counter to give us if we cleaned off a table or swept the floor. I can still hear the Pepsi cooler door slam shut and the sound of the cans being thrown in, the sound of the bread slicer cutting dozens upon dozens of sub rolls every morning and the sound of the tomato witch being slammed over and over. Anyone who has worked there in the past knows what I’m talking about. I still dream of the place every day and I know you do often as well. I want nothing more than to revive my Grandfather’s legend and carry on his legacy for as long as I can. I have spent my life working and studying the restaurant and hospitality industry. I have graduated from Le Cordon Bleu in Cambridge MA and also studied in Assisi Italy with Master Chef Enea Barbanera at La Locanda del Cardinale. I have a vast knowledge and deep passion for this field and I am fully confident that I will be able to deliver a warm and welcoming family restaurant showcasing all of the Toody’s classics that we all know, love and dream about. I have found the most incredible location that was destined for us. Just 2 miles from the original location in a large building suited for all your needs…a quick bite at the bar, a quality homemade meal, a nice family dinner, a birthday party, private function, fundraiser or benefit and even corporate and private catering. I will provide you with a place to make memories with your families and friends for decades to come just like Nana and Grampy did. I have put everything I have into making my dream come true but it costs more than I have available to me and opportunities like this don’t come around often. There is someone else trying to get in to the same location but they don’t have the vision and passion I have and they definitely won’t be able to provide you with six decades of history, memories and great food like I will. Plus they already own a bunch of other locations in other states so they don’t really need this one like I do! I know they aren’t dreaming and scheming like I am. I know it doesn’t keep them up at night or make their skin tingle when they think about it like it does for me. Even the owner of the business wants to see me in there and not the other guys but money talks and I can only keep him at bay for so long. That’s why I really need your help to spread the word and to help me raise enough money to take Toody’s to the level of greatness that I envision. Any amount of money helps and there are rewards and incentives for those who donate plus the reward of knowing that you will have access to Toody’s for as long as one can imagine. I truly appreciate the love and support you have shown my family throughout the years and I hope we can continue the tradition together. Thank you again, from the bottom of my heart, for helping a little girl’s dream come true. I look forward to serving you all in the very near future.