Restaurant's TV Appearance Leads to Trouble With Town

Business has been "tremendous" for Washington Township restaurant Gyros & Goodies since they appeared on the Food Network last month, according to owner Terry Kipriadis.

In the days after the episode of "Restaurant Divided" with celebrity chef Rocco DiSpirito aired, lines were sometimes out the door, and there has still been a noticeable uptick in business in the weeks since, Kipriadis said.

The restaurant's relationship with the town is a different story.

It started when the restaurant put up a banner stating "As seen on... Food Network's Restaurant Divided." Kipriadis got a call from Mayor Janet Sobkowicz, who reportedly said there had been numerous complaints from residents about the sign and asked the restaurateur to take the temporary sign down.

"I don't understand why they're trying to kill business in town," Kipriadis said.

Sobkowicz said she and the town had done a lot to help out the restaurants in the Washington Town Center, including supporting events there, inviting them to take part in the annual Town Day and changing the sign ordinance at the request of Kipriadis and other business owners.

"I have done a lot to help you promote the business," Sobkowicz said to Kipriadis during a council meeting last week.

Two days after their phone conversation, Kipriadis received a notice of violation and $1,000 fine for alleged electrical work done in the restaurant, possibly related to the taping of the show. The inspector had never come to the restaurant, but someone had apparently told him work was done, Kipriadis said.

The inspector didn't show up until about a week later, according to Kipriadis, and she questioned if the issue with the sign and the notice could have been related. There never was any work done without a permit, she said.

Sobkowicz said she hadn't found out about the notice of violation until afterward.

"That had absolutely nothing to do with our conversation," she said.

Township administrator Catherine Navarro-Steinel said it's not the township's policy to policy to issue violations without first making an inspection and added that the inspector would be going back to the restaurant.

"We do not issue violations to make revenue... it's to assist in compliance," Navarro-Steinel said. "If you had something wrong with the store, they're supposed to tell you how to fix it first."

Since the council meeting, officials have informed Kipriadis that she can keep the sign up until December 2. She told Patch she plans to ask for an extension until May 1. The inspector had not yet returned as of Wednesday morning, she said.