Mimi’s Drive-In in Fulton: Mainstreet Mainstay

Third-generation owner introducing changes while keeping intact what has worked for so many years

By Tom and Jerry Caraccioli

For the last 55 years, cars traveling on the eastside of Fulton heading to Oswego or coming from the Port City have undoubtedly seen Mimi’s Drive-In.

Whether or not those drivers have ever stopped to eat at the fabled diner, Mimi’s Drive-In in Fulton, is the symbol of bygone days.

When readers of this magazine think of a “drive-in,” no doubt the images of the 1950s with Fonzi, Richie, Ralph Malph and Potsie sitting in a booth at Arnold’s on the 1970s sitcom “Happy Days” comes to mind. While teenage hijinks and fun were the main dishes at Arnold’s, Mimi’s Drive-In, located at 201 N. Second St., is a family-owned and operated establishment that has been serving favorite American comfort food for more than half-a-century.

The original business, owned by Elwanda and Loren Duell, began as an ice cream stand in Mexico in the late 1950s and early ‘60s.

George Sachel bought it from the Duells in 1970. Local old-timers tell the story about how the establishment’s name came to be. Legend has it when George met his wife, he told her if she married him, he would put her name in lights.

She did. And he did — three times — starting with a Mimi’s Drive-In in Mexico, then opening two more — in Oswego and Fulton. Fulton’s Mimi’s is the only one left.

Today, current owner Richard Tagliareni, the grandson of George and Mimi, continues as the third generation of family to uphold the Mimi’s tradition with classic favorites and new menu items that are worthy of an episode on Guy Fieri’s current Food Network show, “Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives.”

“It was my grandfather that started the business,” Tagliareni said. “His son, Chris, took it over after. Now, since my uncle retired, I’m taking it over. We’re engrained in the community. We’re a staple and hold that up on a pedestal. We cater to the community and are very involved in everything from the schools to local events. Whenever something is going on in the community, Mimi’s is there for them.”

For regulars who have been patronizing the famed, local diner, the menu is what keeps them coming back.

Featuring all-day breakfast, burgers and sandwiches for lunch, Mimi’s is most famous for its homemade chicken and biscuits at dinnertime. Patrons also enjoy generous helpings of homemade chicken parmesan, spaghetti and meatballs, prime rib, thick cut boneless pork chops and more.

Recently, new additions like the Hot Honey Chicken Sandwich and Mimi’s Smash Burger with cheese, sautéed onions and house burger sauce complement homespun favorite melts — Mimi’s Meatloaf Melt, Roast Beef Melt, Pot Roast Melt, Honey BBQ Chicken Melt, Smokehouse Turkey & Bacon Melt, Doubly Pork Melt and Chicken Parm Melt.

“Nostalgia and great food,” Deborah Cash, who has been a waitress at Mimi’s for 20 years, said when answering what brings people back.

“The waitresses,” one of her colleagues also offered with a wink.

“There’s no place like Mimi’s,” Cash continued. “It’s like home. We do our best to make people feel like this is home. Everybody loves to come here. We make everyone feel at home. This is an ‘old-fashioned’ diner and everyone here is special.”

And while the staff rarely forgets a name, they never forget an order. “We know just about everyone’s name but, more importantly, we know exactly what they eat,” Cash said. “There are people that come in and we ask them — ‘You want your usual?’ We bend over backwards to make sure people get what they want. We go the extra mile.”

Tagliareni added, “It’s our friendly atmosphere, our waitresses. We do whatever we can to take care of the customers by going above and beyond in trying to accommodate our guests.”

Despite some changes, Tagliareni is certain the same core reasons people have been coming back since 1970 will be the reasons they continue for the next 50-plus years.

“We’re in the process of converting our menu boards over to digital TV screens,” Tagliareni explained. “People will be able to see pictures of our specials. That is something neat that will be happening soon. We’re not opposed to new ideas, but we also don’t want to mess with what has worked for so many years. We’re really glad to be in the Fulton community and Oswego County. The county has been good to us. And we’ve been good to them. We take that seriously.”

While Mimi’s Drive-In will never feature someone on a motorcycle jumping over steel drum garbage cans in its parking lot for publicity, the famed Fulton establishment doesn’t have to. The drive-in featuring the name of George Sachel’s wife in lights is an institution.

The Other Side of the Family Serves the Public Too

When Richard Tagliareni’s great-grandfather from his father’s side of the family, Charles Giovo, emigrated to the United States from Genoa, Italy, he brought with him a family recipe that today serves as a connection to the traditions of the old country.

“My father’s mom was a Giovo in Mexico, New York, and they owned and operated a soda fountain,” Tagliareni said. “The bloodlines of both sides of my family are in the service and restaurant industry.”

Tagliareni went on to explain how his great-grandfather’s peanut brittle recipe became a community favorite and a part of his family’s tradition that he holds dear.

“My great-grandfather had a special recipe for peanut brittle (Old Charlie’s Homestyle Peanut Brittle) and he would go around Mexico and make it out of the back of his garage. They would sell it in the community and people loved it. It is a special recipe.”

Today, Tagliareni and members of his family gather in the fall of the year and honor their great-grandfather by making a batch of peanut brittle that the current owner of Mimi’s proudly offers.

“I look forward to honoring my family’s legacy by continuing a family tradition,” he said. “I sell it at Mimi’s during the holidays.”