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Hernando Today

Ram's Restaurant Closes

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By TONY HOLT

Hernando Today

Published: July 31, 2008

SPRING HILL - They waited for Kohl's and Target, but they didn't come in time.

The owners of Ram's Restaurant of Spring Hill saw their sales plummet following the collapse of construction market 18 months ago.
Rising gas prices during the last year turned their situation from bad to worse.

"We were trying to hold out," said Donna Zarcone, who ran the business with her husband, Marcello. "We had to put up our own money and we just couldn't."

Ram's opened 11 years ago and was located at 14359 Spring Hill Drive, near the intersection of Barclay Ave.

It was a family-owned operation. All three of Zarcone's kids had a stake in it, she said.

"It's very, very sad," she said. "We're a strong, close family ... but we're all in shock right now."

Shortly after 2 p.m. Wednesday, Marcello Zarcone called one of the owners of nearby Chesapeake Bay Crab House. He was offering to sell some of his prime rib.
Donna Zarcone said more of those calls to other restaurants will be made today and during the rest of the week, but they were still in shock Wednesday. Their phone lines were busy mostly from friends and family who called to console them, she said.

The family saw the writing on the wall months ago and tried to sell the restaurant. The landlords charged an additional $10,000 and $5,000 the last two years, respectively, for a variety of maintenance charges, Donna Zarcone said.

Once the potential buyers learned of those added costs, they pulled out of the deal, she said.

The decision to end the business was made Wednesday morning by Marcello Zarcone. The doors were closed and locked at noon.

The restaurant served breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Ram's had 16 employees. A couple of the servers were there to assist the last group of customers during the last hours and minutes.
Donna Zarcone said she would miss her employees and regular customers "terribly."

One of those customers returned before the restaurant closed to give a couple of the waitresses some money. It might have been the largest tips they ever earned.

"Those (tips) were worth more money than they made here in a couple weeks," Zarcone said. "It was very heartfelt."

Reporter Tony Holt can be reached at 352-544-5823 or wholt@hernandotoday.com.

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