I don’t know about you, but I have plenty of things to do this weekend.
Our calendar is already full, and with five kids, it doesn’t take long to fill each of those darn little blocks.
Just the other day, we had a baccalaureate for our Elms girl, a breakfast birthday dinner for our 8-year-old (his choice), a prom and a Hot Stove baseball game — or as my wife, Jennifer, and I jokingly call it, a typical Friday.
This weekend will be no different with more baseball games, a daughter singing the national anthem before the Medina Half Marathon, a parish Day of Service working in the community, a graduation ceremony. I think I may even have a 25th wedding anniversary mixed in there somewhere.
One of the best parts of family milestones is the chance to eat out.
After Teagan’s baccalaureate, we had lunch at Primo’s Deli in Akron.
This was my first trip to Primo’s (cut me some slack: I’ve only been at the Beacon Journal for 16 years) and the first sign that we were in for a real culinary treat was the packed parking lot.
Another good sign (and in the words of our columnist Bob Dyer “a shameless self-promotion”) were the banners proclaiming itself as a repeat “Beacon’s Best” winner.
I love a good sub or a deli sandwich, and Primo’s fit the bill.
I had the Reuben, and it was yummy. My oldest son, Ryan, tried the No. 1 Spicy Italian sub and it packed a delicious kick.
Aside from my family and subs, I love salty snacks.
My courtship with Primo’s started from the moment we sat down and our server filled the basket on the table with salty potato chips. The love affair continued as they kept on filling the baskets with more and more chips.
I felt a little guilty devouring chip after chip, knowing that we had a few empty chairs at our table.
Our youngest two boys were in school, we figured the baccalaureate would turn into a gripe fest and our oldest, Tessa, was somewhere in India studying abroad with Ohio State, sweating her way through a bout of typhoid fever.
Turns out, she didn’t actually have the cool-sounding travel ailment, but picked up a nasty bug while touring a seedier side of India as part of a public health class.
Back at our table at Primo’s, we were soaking in (and worrying a wee bit about poor Tessa) the ambiance of this quirky eatery near the top of the hill on Vernon Odom Boulevard a bit north of Interstate 77.
The coolers full of bottles of beer proved a bit too much for my wife so she opted for a draft beer (a tasty blueberry pancake concoction) served in a frosty mug.
Another one of my criteria for a great place to eat is one where you have to hunt for the restroom.
At Primo’s, head straight past the deli case and take a left — turn right, and you will be in the kitchen.
The deli case here is not just for show; they cut the meat fresh.
On our way out, a worker was making up row after row of the No. 1 Spicy Italian subs for the next wave of hungry eaters.
It was tempting to turn around for a ninth round of chips and a another sub.