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February 24, 2008 23L Sunday Gazette-Mail By Kelly Holleran [email protected] Cary Charbonniez always knew that if she opened her own restaurant, she wanted it to be a fun place. Her wishes came true in De- cember 2005 when she opened Lola’s. She had graduated from New England Culinary Institute in Vermont. When she saw that the little place in South Hills was for sale, she jumped at the chance to buy it. Cary, 34, had grown up in Charleston and her then boyfriend/now husband, Pierre, 33, still lived in the city, so it was an easy decision to make. She opened the restaurant and named it Lola’s after her great-grandmother. “She was a very strong woman and a very good woman,” she said. She hoped the same would be true of her restaurant. So far, things have gone well. There are about 10 employees at the restaurant, including three cooks and a dishwasher. They make all the dough and sauce for the pizzas. They caramelize their onions. Even the recipes are Cary’s own. There is more to running a business than just making food, though, as Cary quickly found out. “I’m more involved in differ- ent aspects of the business than I thought I would be,” she said. “There is lots of paperwork in- volved. It’s gone a lot smoother than I expected. I think that it’s been pleasantly surprising.” Anyone can tell just by walk- ing into the establishment that it’s not your run-of-the-mill piz- za joint. Colorful paintings decorate brightly colored walls. Benches with pillows line walls on one side of the building. A small bar sits to the right of the entrance. Maybe that’s the secret to the success of the business, Cary said. “I think that we are very fam- ily- and friend-oriented,” she said. “I think it’s a good neigh- borhood establishment.” She likes owning a small busi- ness and would like to keep it that way. Her only future plans are to add a deck to the business in the spring or the summer, she said. She credits the community for her success, and is grateful for their encouragement. “Thank you to all the people that support us,” she said. Her home life has been evolv- ing at the same pace as her restaurant. In January of 2007, Cary and Pierre got married. At the same time, Pierre start- ed his own business, Charbon- niez Designs. He creates concrete counter- tops for everything from kitchens to bathrooms to re- ception desks. One of his pieces — a bench — is on display at Taylor Books. He also built the new bar in Cary’s restaurant. His first piece was the bar in the Vandalia Lounge, where he formerly worked with his broth- er-in-law, Virgil Sadorra. That experience inspired him to try make a go of it on his own. He worked in construction out West for a number of years and had noticed the trend. Concrete counters are finally becoming popular in the area, and Pierre hopes to see his business grow. He has done a number of pieces in the area, including a reception desk at Ashland Oil. He is working on a piece for Stonewall Resort. Recently Cary and Pierre have been busy not only working, but also taking care of their 8- month-old twins, Iris and Zoe. Cary still works a few days a week. She has an office at her house where she also spends some time working. But it’s not nearly the amount of time she is used to putting in. “Up until the time the girls were born, I was up here every night,” she said. She plans to work full-time again beginning in June. For now, her staff is giving her a lot of help. Ryan Webster, an employee, takes care of things when Cary is not there. “I’ve been so fortunate to have a great staff,” she said. Pierre and Cary work oppo- site hours, so that has been helpful, too. He usually gets home about 6 p.m. and she goes to work about 4 p.m. The couple hires a woman to help take care of their daughters three days a week during the two-hour pock- et. In the end, all the work is worth it, Pierre and Cary said. “It’s really cool because no matter what happens with your day, when you see your little girls smile at you, it’s all good,” he said. Cary couldn’t agree more. “Having a family is so won- derful,” she said. “At the end of the day, what- ever sacrifices you have to make, it’s all worth it.” Owner likes pizza place’s intimacy, familial air CRAIG CUNNINGHAM/Sunday Gazette-Mail Jon O’Dell slices a pizza while owner Cary Charbonniez stretches some pizza dough in the kitchen at Lola’s restaurant in Charleston’s South Hills section. In the background are chefs Ryan Webster, left, and Jon Byer. Waiter Ian Bode pours some wine while David Calhoun and Lisa Lynn sit at the bar at Lola’s restaurant in South Hills. In the background, Edwardo Canelon plays Latin style guitar. Waitress Betty Gay rushes a pizza to a customer while manager Mike Medley checks on an order in the kitchen at Lola’s restaurant in South Hills. By Charlotte Ferrell Smith [email protected] The sweet aroma of fresh baked goods wafts from the Pur- ple Turtle at nearly any hour. Items are baked fresh on a dai- ly, and nightly, basis to meet de- mand. The little Sissonville bakery sells an abundance of goodies from cakes, pies, cookies and pastries to pepperoni rolls, spe- cialty breads and assorted sugar- free items. The Purple Turtle celebrates a successful one-year anniversary on Feb. 24. While many new food-based businesses fold after only a year, the Purple Turtle is thriving. There are faithful customers in the community as well as others who drive from Hunt- ington, Beckley and Clarksburg. Even out-of-state folks make a point to stop when they are on their way through the area be- cause friends have raved about the place. “We do a really good busi- ness,” said owner Donna Davis. “I would really love to thank our customers. Some come every day for coffee and breakfast. Our local customers are fantas- tic.” Davis loves her dream job of making icing, cakes, pastries and dough from original secret recipes. She also loves seeing sat- isfied customers and being part of special occasions when she makes wedding cakes. She took a leap of faith to open her bakery and is thankful to all who give her business a boost. Even though her business is small, she gives back to the community when she can by do- nating goods for area schools or organizations to re-sell at fundraisers. She has also taken items to homeless shelters and a nearby funeral home when there are visitations. She left a good job with ben- efits 12 years ago to open the bakery. She said she was work- ing with wonderful people at NGK Spark Plugs in Sissonville where she was warehouse man- ager. Her colleagues were so happy for her that they helped her get going by doing every- thing from serving as tasters to picking up equipment out of state that she bought on eBay. She also has a dedicated crew of employees and relatives to keep things running smoothly. Her husband, Kenny Davis, a Carbide retiree, helps out on weekends. Her mother, Bodie Haynes, helps as needed. Niece Kippi Harmon helped a steady stream of customers at the count- er on a recent morning. Dough- nut makers are cousins Lee Leach and Tonja Jordan. The only worker who is not related is Debbie Thompson, who works the counter and does assorted other chores. “We all do a little of every- thing,” Davis said. Among the best sellers are hot dogs, doughnuts filled with buttercream icing, and pepperoni rolls created from dough made from scratch and generously stuffed with pepperoni and cheese. All recipes are secrets that took months and sometimes years to perfect. Davis was very young when she learned to bake alongside her mother. As a young mother herself, she took a cake decorating class at Sissonville High School. She later landed a job as a decorator at Spring Hill Pastry Shop. She worked there for eight years before leaving for NGK. She is now working long, hard hours but finds her dream job very rewarding. Glass cases are filled with vir- tual works of art that beg to be touched and tasted. It’s a pa- rade of doughnuts, hot dogs, nutty devils, regular and per- sonal-sized pies, gigantic peanut butter cookies, cinnamon and pecan rolls, turnovers, éclairs and napoleons. While Davis dotes on all her customers, she loves the gleam- ing eyes of little ones with their faces pressed against the glass as they choose a special cupcake or cookie. Seeing their excitement makes it worth wiping off the fin- gerprints, she said. Purple Turtle Pastry Shop, 6842 Sissonville Road, is open 6:45 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Tuesday through Friday. The shop is closed Sunday and Monday. For more information check out the Web site www.purpleturtlepas- try.com or call 984-3600. Sweet dreams coming true for baked goods proprietor TOM HINDMAN/Sunday Gazette-Mail Purple Turtle owner Donna Davis creates pepperoni rolls with dough made from scratch. Her business celebrates a successful one-year anniversary on Feb. 24. Glass cases are filled with fresh baked goodies that sell quickly at the Purple Turtle Pastry Shop near Sissonville.
