FEATURE
BY LEAH BETHEA something for everybo
It ’ s Friday night in
Milledgeville , and after a long week , a family of five is traveling through town trying to decide on a place to eat . The adults in the car are in the mood for wings and a salad , two of the kids have their hearts set on pizza and another has a hankering for a sandwich .
Lucky for that family , there is a place where they can find every bit of that .
“ They pick Amici ,” says Jon Joiner , co-owner of the popular restaurant , “ because there ’ s something on the menu for everybody .”
Along with the high quality of food they serve , it ’ s the variety they offer that Joiner attributes to much of the success Amici has had .
“ Pizza and wings are our two biggest staples of who we are and what we do , but we also have a menu that offers something for anyone ,” he says .
Amici ’ s extensive menu includes salads , pastas , sandwiches , unique appetizers and fun specials . The restaurant also boasts a full service bar with specialty cocktails , 20 beers on tap and a variety of craft beer selections .
“ We ’ re offering a one stop shop ,” Joiner says . “ You can come in and there ’ s something for everybody to do , and there ’ s usually some entertainment , and it ’ s just a relaxing , everybodycome-as-you-are-and-enjoy atmosphere .”
Amici ’ s Milledgeville location opened its doors back in 1999 . It was the second to open behind the restaurant in Madison , where corporate headquarters is still located . Today , there are currently 11 locations with two more being opened within the year .
Joiner and fellow co-owner Jonathan “ Bob ” Ewing both began working at the Milledgeville location in its early days when they were just college students themselves .
“ We both started in the kitchen , and we worked our way up through pretty much every position in that place ,” Joiner remembers .
As time progressed , corporate Amici continued to grow and franchise . By around 2007 , Ewing had become the Milledgeville location ’ s general manager and Joiner was the kitchen manager . Both were finished with their studies at Georgia College and had begun to discuss going into business together . They toyed with the idea of asking corporate if they could take the Milledgeville location over as a franchise .
Joiner still remembers calling Chris Torino , founder of Amici , and asking him if he was interested in having the two buy the restaurant from him .
“ He said , ‘ I ’ ve been waiting for this phone call ,’” he says .
The two were excited about the opportunity , but as new college graduates , they knew they would face some challenges .
“ We didn ’ t have much to our names ,” Joiner laughs .
But on Jan . 1 of 2009 , they officially purchased the location , and in the next two years , they were able to purchase the building . In their first four years , the two increased sales over 10 percent each year , which was quite a feat considering the nation was coming out of a recession when they began . Joiner remembers reading an article back then that detailed seven businesses not to go into during the time .
“ We made the list twice . One was restaurants and one was franchisees … So , in the middle of all that happening , we were still able to make it happen and really to build on what was already in place . Since then , our success there has given us the ability to branch out .”
The two bought the Lake Oconee Amici for six years , and in 2018 they opened a Macon location . In 2019 , they sold the Lake Oconee location so they could focus on Milledgeville and Macon .
From the get-go , the two made it their mission to create an atmosphere that would be welcoming for anybody from any walk of life whether it be college kids , professionals , local residents or families . And , they were also focused on creating entertainment for all .
“ Live music has always been something that we believe in and support ,” Joiner says . “ We love to have a really electric atmosphere for sports events whether it be football , basketball , baseball , World Cup … We have a lot of fun doing that . We offer a trivia night . We kinda wanted to offer a place where you can just kinda come in , grab a bite and relax .”
The two like to give back to the community as well . For Georgia College ’ s homecoming , they always sponsor an alumni tent , and they are involved with GMC providing pizza for football games . They also support and contribute to Deep Roots Festival , and Joiner says every year , they set a single day sales record for
26 Milledgeville Scene | Holiday 2022