Replies

"Yeah? Whadda YOU want?"
"I'd like a chili dog, please."
"Get out! I don't like your attitude."

Yep that's their attitude alright. I've seen the owner say "u finished then get outta here"

I used to hang out at this wonderful establishment when I was in high school and college. It was wonderful. Great chili cheese dogs, cold beer, waitress would always have a black eye or two. Sorry to hear about this.

There are two places in that part of the world which have character: The VI and McKeevers (formerly Georges). Everything else is aged formica.

"I'll take two all the way!" You know you've made the big time when the Associated Press covers your predicament. I hope when they rebuild, they figure out a way to keep the crooked floors and chipped linoleum.

heh, There is a local legend that if you haven't had your baby yet. Go to the Vienna inn, order two chili dogs and you'll drop the baby that day sometime.

Amazing that so many people know about the VI. I wonder if the fire was caused by accumulated grease in the ceiling again. Yes, again...I seem to remember a fire there in the 80's that was caused by that.

Haven't been there in a while...do they still have their trophy from Busch for selling the most beer in Virginia?

Customer:"Could I have a Zima please?"

Waitress:"GET OUT"

Used to go there with my father, many years ago. Great place.

Havent been there in ten + years. I use to hold my office record for the most chili-cheese dogs eaten - 12.

Workers vow to rebuild Vienna Inn
By KRISTI COX
Journal staff writer

Sorting through charred rubble of the Vienna Inn early Wednesday, Gabrielle Silver said she wasn't just going through the ruins of her workplace. She was sifting through memories of a town.

A friend who called her put it best: ``She said, `You would think the town of Vienna burned down,'" said Silver, a waitress and manager of the renowned establishment. ``It means a lot to people."

Just how much became evident Wednesday when the beloved eatery, known for its chili dogs and atmosphere, was devastated by a fire that officials are describing as ``electrical in nature."

The two-alarm blaze ripped through the back office and dry storage, tearing through a portion of the roof and causing an estimated $125,000 in damage, the fire department said. The dining area was left relatively unscathed.

About 50 firefighters were called in at 3:40 a.m. to battle the blaze. It took them about 25 minutes to bring the fire under control.

Even as employees vowed to rebuild Wednesday, trying to salvage whatever they could from the gutted offices and setting up plans to reopen, patrons gathered to pay homage to a Vienna landmark.

Bob Tuccillo drove 30 minutes from Falls Church. He stood in a steady rain, staring at the smashed-out windows and gutted back offices, to show his support for the place he has frequented for more than a decade.

``I wanted to see it wasn't going to be torn down," he said, calling the restaurant that used church pews as benches a ``local institution."

He described the humble tavern as ``one of the last, best places in Vienna" where patrons could chow down on ``a working man's lunch" and enjoy ``reasonable prices and good food."

Clad in a Vienna Inn baseball hat, restaurant manager Mark Bragaw insisted the tavern will be back.

``Absolutely, we will reopen," he said. ``It's a very unique place. People have been coming here for 40-plus years. You saw the same faces."

And the community that cherishes the restaurant is offering to help rebuild it, Bragaw said.

``Everybody is doing what they can to help," he said.

Owner Marty LeRoy could not be reached for comment Wednesday.

This isn't the first time residents have offered to pitch in to help the business after a catastrophe.

Town council member Vincent Olson said he remembered patrons helping out after a fire damaged the building a couple of years ago.

``Years ago, they had a fire up there and the patrons, many of whom are tradespeople and so forth, came in and went to work on it," Olson said, saying they had the establishment open again in a few days.

The building had gone through a few incarnations - first starting as an ice cream parlor in 1925, then becoming a drugstore and cafe - before Mike and Mollie Abraham purchased the building in 1960. They renamed it the Vienna Inn.

It was the Abrahams who transformed the establishment into a popular restaurant, town council member Albert J. Boudreau said.

``They were an absolute delight," he said. ``There wasn't a thing we could ask for that they didn't jump in and do twice."

And the little place on Maple Avenue literally was known around the world, Boudreau said.

``I got on an airplane in Japan. My seatmate asked me where I was from. I said, `Vienna,' and he said, `I know the Vienna Inn,'" Boudreau said Wednesday.

The Abrahams sold the Inn to LeRoy about two years ago but still owned the building, said Chris Corridon, an electrical contractor with Jim Corridon Electric and friend of LeRoy.

He said LeRoy has worked hard to maintain the same atmosphere the Abrahams cultivated for decades - including the Little League photographs and trophies that festooned the walls.

It was that commitment to the community that made the tavern so unique, Olson said.

``Over the years, many people enjoyed themselves there and it was known around the world," he said. ``People would talk about Vienna and somebody, who might be a stranger and might have been stationed in the area, knew it. The Abrahams were very dedicated owners and did a lot for the town."

Silver said fellow employees were ``positive" despite their loss.

``We're going to reopen and it's going to be just as good as it was before," she said.

http://cold.jrnl.com/cfdocs/ne w/ffx/story.cfm?paper=ffx& section=fp&snumber=03

Volunteers pitch in to reopen tavern
By KRISTI COX
Journal staff writer

The walls were bare, the register new and the acrid smell of smoke still hung in the air. But Joe, Ken, John and Kent were there anyway at their traditional time of 7 a.m. Friday, determined to lend support to the Vienna Inn on its reopening day.

After a flurry of telephone calls and e-mails Thursday, the regulars were back in their booths Friday. They were heckling each other over the worn backs of converted church benches serving as booths, one week after the tavern at 123 Maple Ave. was temporarily closed because of an electrical fire.

``The 7 o'clock crowd is very consistent," said patron Bob Finger, lingering over breakfast plates and a cup of coffee. ``If you're in town, you better show up, and if you're not gonna show up, tell somebody because they'll worry about what happened to you. It's been going on for years."

One week, about $150,000 in repairs and several sleep-deprived nights later, owner Marty Volk, manager Mark Bragaw and the wait staff were ready for business.

There were jokes about specials on smoked chili dogs and a sign on the door read ``Mondays are now non-smoking." Waitresses wore tiny, red plastic helmets emblazoned with ``Fire Chief." Rumors that the blaze was ignited by a disgruntled waitress who received a $2 tip on a $250 tab were jokingly spread.

But mainly there was a sense of settling back into a comfortable tradition.

``I had to come and say thanks for opening up, make sure everybody's still healthy and make sure the waitresses make a little extra because they haven't made anything for the last few days," said Finger, in between spars with fellow breakfasters Joe Morris, Ken Hill, John Doolittle and Kent Woodburn.

``I felt bad for all the people who work here because I knew they'd be out of income for a while."

A two-alarm electrical fire June 19 destroyed the restaurant's dry storage area and offices, but left the dining area and kitchen relatively unscathed.

Standing behind the worn bar, Deborah Berger, who has worked at the inn since 1988, admits the past week was ``stressful."

``When I actually saw what happened, I knew we'd be reopening," Berger said. ``But I did not think it would be this fast."

At first, the only person who did believe it was Volk.

Aided by a contingent of 50-75 volunteers, Volk and Bragaw worked virtually around the clock to meet his deadline.

``It took a lot to get it done in a week," Volk said. ``It took a lot of good people."

Volk said many regulars lent more than just emotional support - they helped clean up, pull down and put up.

``They've been stopping by the whole time and just saying `Hello,' asking if they can help out. Some of them were walking through the door and pitching in," said Volk as he looked around the dining room that was bustling with a smaller, but no less enthusiastic, lunch crowd. ``If it wasn't for them, we wouldn't be open."

Doug D'Alexander and Steve Bukont - owners of Ayrhills Homes and BFR Construction - did most of the renovations, sacrificing sleep and family time to help out an old friend.

D'Alexander estimated that 500-600 square feet of building and 1,000 square feet of roof were damaged.

``A million things had to happen and a million people had to help," D'Alexander said.``It was a good community process. I think they all just wanted to come back."

As of noon Friday, Volk estimated business was back 40-50 percent. Employees were replacing newly cleaned trophies on shelves, children were busy scribbling drawings on walls and regulars were saying the fare was as tasty as usual.

``I've already had a chili dog and it tasted the same," D'Alexander said.

Volk already is planning a grand reopening sometime in July.

And he's sure to have plenty of support that day, too.

Early Friday morning, regular Billie Berry captured the sentiment of loyal patrons when she strode through the door and threw her arms wide.

``Good morning," she proclaimed. ``The Vienna Inn is open. Life is good."

http://cold.jrnl.com/cfdocs/ne w/ffx/story.cfm?paper=ffx& section=fp&snumber=01