News - Local/State

Wednesday, Nov. 19, 2008

Downtown Rock Hill gets its java back

Where others have folded, coffeehouse eyes potential

First came the Rock Hill Roasting Co. Then Firehouse Espresso Cafe. The latest arrival at a restaurant carousel in downtown Rock Hill is Augello's Coffeehouse and Delicatessen.

This time, owner Chuck Augello says things will be different.

Augello's is set to open Monday in an offbeat, multilevel space in the City Plaza between Main and Black streets, where previous tenants haven't found lasting success.

"I'm sure a lot of people are wondering, 'Well, why is this going to be different?'" said Augello (, ah-JELL-o). "We want to show them our experience is going to be better."

The Roasting Co. showed early promise, but business tailed off and it closed in 2005. Firehouse opened in September 2007 and lasted less than nine months.

Into the void steps Augello, a 50-year-old native of Bethlehem, Pa., who says the winning ingredient in his recipe is the Augello family.

Brother Matt will serve as full-time operations manager. Son William will join the staff in August, when he finishes a stint with the U.S. Air Force. Nephew Jon will work as a barista on the nighttime staff. And wife Barbara will help out with entertainment and special events.

The family connection won over building owner David Rogers, who has watched other tenants arrive with similar hopes, only to fall short.

"Everybody working here cares about the business," Rogers said. "It's not a paycheck. It's pride in their name."

Chuck Augello, an information technology specialist, says he'll work full time at the restaurant until it gets established. The place will serve sandwiches ranging from $5.99 Italian hoagies to $5.49 chicken Caesar salad wraps. It also will offer a salad bar, soup specials, baked goods and coffees.

Local coffee lovers have waited for a new hangout since Cupps closed earlier this year. Cupps, on Cherry Road across from Winthrop University, ended its nine-month run when owner Chuck Robinson took a job in the computer industry.

Robinson thinks the new place can work -- if Augello can make inroads with the growing number of downtown office workers.

"What he's going to need to do is tap into the folks who are already downtown," Robinson said. "A lot of our really fanatic customers were college students. He's going to need to not count on college students alone, but certainly count on them as much as possible."

The coffeehouse will join a roster of restaurants that includes Kinch's, McHale's Irish Pub, Old Town Bistro, Thi's Place and the Cookie Cafe.

Redevelopment in downtown has progressed to the point that the Woolworth building on Main Street is the only undeveloped space dating back to the TownCenter Mall era. That era ended in 1993, when the city removed the roof over downtown.

Augello's will be open from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. until a grand opening on Dec. 15, when it will stay open until 8 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays and 10 p.m. on Fridays. Live entertainment is planned on Friday and Saturday evenings.