Restaurant Names and How They Got Them

Napoli's Riverdale Road building was the former site of a Cafe Rio. photo by Valerie Phillips
Napoli’s Riverdale Road building was the former site of a Cafe Rio. photo by Valerie Phillips

What’s in a restaurant name? Usually, a good story as well as good food.

A few years ago I shared the history of restaurant names such as Hug-Hes, Plates & Palates, Chuck-A-Rama, Eva, Tona Sushi and Copper Onion got their names. You can check that story out here.

Just about every time I interview a restaurateur, I ask about the name. Here are the back stories of 13 local restaurants’ names.

Can a name make or break a restaurant? I don’t know, but having a memorable, easy-to-pronounce name doesn’t hurt.

Chris and Nicole Carver named their Tonyburgers restaurants for Chris’s brother, Tony. photo by Valerie Phillips

TONYBURGERS (7 locations in Utah): The owner isn’t named Tony. Owners Chris and Nicole Carver of Kaysville named their original restaurant for Chris’s younger brother, Tony, who “who used to cook  us these really thick burgers when we were younger,” said Chris. “We called them Tonyburgers.”

They thought “Tonyburgers” rolled off the tongue better than “Chrisburgers” or “Nickiburgers.”

Napoli's Riverdale Road building was the former site of a Cafe Rio. photo by Valerie Phillips
Napoli’s Riverdale Road building was the former site of a Cafe Rio. photo by Valerie Phillips

NAPOLI’S in South Ogden: Owner Antonio Geminiani said his parents opened their first restaurant in the Bronx, New York in 1987. His mother is from Napoli (the Italian word for Naples) and his father is from Sicily, so they ended up calling it Napoli’s. 

Antonio Geminiani, one of the owners of Napoli's in South Ogden. Photo by Valerie Phillips
Antonio Geminiani, one of the owners of Napoli’s in South Ogden. Photo by Valerie Phillips

They later expanded to Texas, Iowa, Arkansas, and Missouri. I looked online and found several Napoli’s in these areas. Although none had the same exact menu as the Ogden location, they are similar.

i.d.k. Barbecue in Ogden's Five Points Shopping Center. photo by Valerie Phillips
i.d.k. Barbecue in Ogden’s Five Points Shopping Center. photo by Valerie Phillips

i.d.k. BARBECUE in Tropic, Huntsville and Ogden: When owners Kevin and Emily Clark were dating, Kevin would ask Emily where she wanted to eat dinner, and she would always answer, “I don’t know. Where do you want to go?” 

Kevin Clark at the Ogden i.d.k. Barbecue, where some of the seating is made from the beds of old trucks. Photo by Valerie Phillips
Kevin Clark at the Ogden i.d.k. Barbecue, where some of the seating is made from the beds of old trucks. Photo by Valerie Phillips

  Kevin would tease that he should open a restaurant called “I Don’t Know,” so she wouldn’t have that as an answer anymore.

  “It was a joke, we never thought we would open a restaurant, but it turned out to be a premonition.”

Joe Pan of Sushi Pro conveyor belt sushi in Ogden. photo by Valerie Phillips
Joe Pan of Sushi Pro conveyor belt sushi in Ogden. photo by Valerie Phillips

SUSHI PRO in Ogden: Proprietor Joe Pan brought the conveyor belt sushi to Ogden, and is currently operating the only conveyor belt sushi restaurant in Utah (as far as we know).

He initially was going to call it Sushi Plus, but then decided to go with Sushi Pro.

Oscar Rodriguez, owner of Scrambled! in Layton. photo by Valerie Phillips
Oscar Rodriguez, owner of Scrambled! in Layton. photo by Valerie Phillips

SCRAMBLED in Layton: Owner Oscar Rodriguez’s restaurant specializes in breakfast, and the name tells the story. He thought of the name Scrambled! while “trying to think of something marketable, something trendy like the restaurants in New York City, and I wanted to incorporate yellow into our logo.”  If you look to the upper righthand corner of the above photo, you’ll see the Scrambled! logo in the background.

Winai Ketbot, owner of W Thai Chef in Kaysville, Utah. photo by Valerie Phillips
Winai Ketbot, owner of W Thai Chef in Kaysville, Utah. photo by Valerie Phillips

W THAI CHEF in Kaysville: The “W” in the restaurant’s name stands for the owner’s first name, Winai. Originally from Thailand, Winai Ketbot first came to Utah in 2002 as a Buddhist missionary. After graduating from culinary school, he worked at his mother’s restaurant before opening his own in 2022.

Annie's Diner in Kaysville has vintage charm. photo by Valerie Phillips
Annie’s Diner in Kaysville has vintage charm. photo by Valerie Phillips

ANNIE’S DINER in Kaysville: The original owner, Annie Sill Curry, grew up working in her parents’ Sill’s Café, the longtime Layton landmark known for its down-home breakfasts.  In 2003, she opened Granny Annie’s at 286 N. 400 West, and it soon gained a reputation for its tried-and-true breakfast menu, including the signature Kaysville Special– hash browns, eggs, bacon, gravy and a Utah-style scone. Jason Sanders, a Kaysville attorney, heard that Annie, now 75, was trying to find a buyer, he jumped in to buy the restaurant and save it from closing.

A Utah-style scone with honey butter at Annie's Diner in Kaysville. photo by Valerie Phillips
Staying on Annie’s menu: the popular Utah-style scone with honey butter. photo by Valerie Phillips

Sanders changed the name to Annie’s Diner, “because she’s not here, but we wanted to keep her name in it. We are carrying on the heart that Annie had when she opened this place. We are elevating it.”

Co-owner Tyler Bess at Blue Fin Sushi, located on the east side of the Midtown Crossing Bridge.
Co-owner Tyler Bess at Blue Fin Sushi, located on the east side of the Midtown Crossing Bridge. photo by Valerie Phillips

BLUE FIN SUSHI in Layton: The name “Blue Fin,” comes from the bluefin tuna, which is the restaurant’s top-selling fish.

“It’s known for being the best tuna,” said co-owner Tyler Bess. “It’s very expensive; hardly anybody can get their hands on it to serve it. It has the quality and exclusivity we were going for. People come here for it because they can’t get it anywhere else.”

The Chavez family with their Camaro bought from some of their first No Manches Way earnings.
The Chavez family pose with their new Camaro and restaurant, No Manches Way. photo by Valerie Phillips

NO MANCHES WAY in Ogden: Maria Chavez said that in Spanish, “No Manches Way” roughly translates to “No way, dude!” But it can be used as a slang term with different meanings, depending on the mood.

The restaurant specializes in birria, the top seller is the quesabirria —tortillas filled with the braised shredded beef and mozzarella cheese, cooked on a flat-top grill until the tortilla is glistening and crisp, and the cheese is melty.  They come with a cup of birria dipping broth.

Lefty Montoya and Brian Zinsmann, owners of Wimpy and Fritz in Ogden. photo by Valerie Phillips

WIMPY AND FRITZ: With its skater dude vibe, this doesn’t seem like your grandfather’s typical Mexican restaurant. But in a way, it is. Co-owners Lane “Lefty” Montoya and Brian Zinsmann named the restaurant after their grandfathers. Montoya’s grandfather was nicknamed Wimpy, and Zinsmann’s grandfather was nicknamed Fritz.

Manager Denise Hardy with appetizer street tacos at Sydney's in Mantua. photo by Valerie Phillips
Manager Denise Hardy with appetizer street tacos at Sydney’s in Mantua. photo by Valerie Phillips

Sydney’s Place in Mantua: Manager/owner Denise Hardy named it Sydney’s, after her late mother. It’s also Denise’s first name (Sydney Denise). And Denise’s daughter, who works at the restaurant, is named Sydney as well.

  “My mom passed away from cancer and never got to see it,” said Hardy, with catch of emotion in her voice. “Just to see her name on a building would have made her so happy. That’s the biggest joy to me.”

Sydney's in Mantua. Valerie Phillips photo
Sydney’s in Mantua. Valerie Phillips photo

But Denise didn’t forget her dad — she named the Flintski chicken sandwich for him.

Justin and Jaimie Buehler of Table Twenty Five, with their twins, Henry and Grace. photo provided

TABLE TWENTY-FIVE in Ogden: When owners Justin and Jaimie Buehler went out on their first date, both of them talked of wanting to open their own restaurant. This conversation, while sitting at a California restaurant’s “table number 25,” marked the start of their relationship.

And years later, when they finally fulfilled their dream of opening a restaurant, it was on Ogden’s Historic 25th Street.

Want to share any back stories on other restaurant names? Feel free to leave a comment!