history of the arena
the airport drive-in
The Airport Drive-In began when MJ Tarantine "Mote" started it in the early 1950's. It was a small open air restaurant at the entrance of the Wellsville airport. Mote leased this location from the Town of Wellsville. Mote had a personality that attracted many folks. He was described as "dapper" and quite a "gentleman." The Airport Drive-In sold Richardson's root beer in frosted mugs which was a big to-do. His wife's recipe for barbecue chicken was also a big hit, making barbecue chicken and root beer the local favorites from the Airport Drive-In. Mote ran the Airport Drive-In until 1964. The Wellsville airport still carries the name "Tarantine" today; honoring Mote and his dedication.
the dill pickle
In 1964, Mote sold his lease to the Gomez brothers from Westons Mills, and Jim Close soon joined them. When the airport moved to its current location, it opened up the Drive-In to become the first location of the Dill Pickle. Jim Close (owner) worked at Air Preheater and was well known and liked by the locals, which was a draw for customers to the Dill Pickle. The once open-air diner took on new form and now hosted guests with indoor seating and a larger menu. In 1971, Larry Walsh bought the building and took over the lease, with Jim Close still running the Dill Pickle. In 1978, the Town of Wellsville voted to sell the property that the Dill Pickle was on to Larry Walsh. In 1979, Jim Close purchased the then "Chit Chat" restaurant on the Andover Rd. and moved the Dill Pickle to that location, where his personality and good food continued to draw locals. The location of the Dill Pickle on the Andover Rd. is now Las Brassas Mexican Grill.
colombia bank
In 1978, Larry Walsh sold the building and lot to Jim Raptis. In early 1979, Jim Raptis and Columbia bank entered into a lease for the building of a new location for Columbia Bank. At the time, Columbia Bank was the largest state chartered bank in New York. Columbia Bank was seeking to expand from its location on Main St. in Alfred, and liked this location in Wellsville. There are a number of "round" bank buildings around western New York; all of which used to operate as Columbia Bank. These buildings were designed by Betty Cole, who was working for a design firm in Victor, NY, and who still has local connections in the area today. Columbia Bank began demolition of the Dill Pickle in September of 1979 in order to begin construction of the new "bank in the round." Until the building was completed, a trailer office was set up in the parking area, so Wellsville and the surrounding communities could conduct business beginning at once.
community bank
In October of 2014, Community Bank acquired Columbia Bank and took over this location. Many who banked here remember a live tree growing inside the center of the round building. In June of 2020, Community Bank acquired Steuben Bank assets; giving Community Bank three locations in Wellsville. On April 9, 2020, Community Bank decided to close operations at the "round" building on the Bolivar Rd. In September of 2022, the lease at this location expired, leaving its future in the hands of the Raptis family.
about us
the arena
The Raptis family now had a location that was vacant and available for development. Jim Raptis' son Mike, who lives in Wellsville was on a task to find a new purpose for this "diamond" of a location. Mike asked his partners in another business if they would be interested in opening up a second location here. At this point in time, they decided not to pursue this idea. Mike then turned to his children to see if there was any interest, and at this point, they too declined the opportunity. So, out came the "available for development" signs. Interest was shown by some locals to use it as a salon, or even a dispensary, but these were not the proper uses for this "diamond". Two different food franchises were ready to sign long term leases. At this time, Mike spoke to his children again and let them know that they would not get control of this location back until they reached his age (we'll leave his age out of it though). This was the turning point. Mike's eldest, Isabelle, and his youngest, Gabriel, decided to take on this task. It was decided to open a pizza, wing, and sub shop with yearlong availability of homemade ice cream.
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Our family has been trying to eat healthy for many years, so we knew that we needed to serve an upgraded, higher quality product. In March of 2024, Gabriel and Mike went to the International Pizza Expo in Las Vegas to learn from the best. It was there that we chose our pizza oven; direct from Italy. It was there that we learned many things, and we hope that our pizza reflects it. Not wanting to over burden the children with too much, Mike and Michelle went on a search for locally made homemade ice cream, and found such a product at Seneca Farms located in Pen Yan, NY. Seneca Farms has been making their own ice cream for decades using high quality ingredients. Established in 1950, Seneca Farms was the first creamery in the Finger Lakes region. They have been churning fresh ice cream using exclusively milk products sourced from farms in New York State.
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At some point in time, Mike thought of serving "Broasted" style chicken. This is chicken cooked in a pressure cooker, similar to what one might use for canning purposes, but filled with a cooking oil (we chose 100% beef tallow). Broasted is a brand name, so we cannot use that name; hence, "Arena" style chicken. Arena style chicken keep the juices in the meat of the chicken, therefore not allowing the tallow to seep into the meat, but staying in the outer breading. This style produces a juicier inside, while keeping the outside crispy. In all our fryers (both pressure and open) we are using 100% beef tallow with no additives or extras. Tallow is a heart healthy fat.
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Though we are aware that the items we serve are a form of comfort food, it is out mission to provide products that are one step healthier, while providing great flavor at a reasonable price for the upgrade in quality. All our Arena Style Chicken is fresh. Our wings will be offered baked in addition to the traditional fried wings. Our hard ice cream is home made (by Seneca Farms) with higher quality ingredients and fewer ingredients than store bought. Our pizza crusts, along with sub rolls, are made from scratch. Our pizza dough will be easily digestible; not giving you the feeling that you just over indulged on a Thanksgiving dinner and need to lay down. Our pizza cheese is made without preservatives; even our cold cuts are of a higher quality and have no preservatives. We realize that the more food is processed, the less healthy it is for our bodies, and we are trying to avoid that as much as possible. Heck, even our drinks that are offered have fewer ingredients in them.
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We hope that you will enjoy not only the food, which we have tried to produce the best version of, but also the interior atmosphere. The building is super unique and in that sense, the building gave us a gift to work with. We have tried to continue that unique experience throughout the restaurant dining area.
