Chef and family open restaurant in New Riegel

NEW RIEGEL — After 25 years, a man who has been working in the restaurant industry has decided to open his own business. Alex Love, former executive chef at Carmies Bar and Grill, along with his wife Erin, have opened Sauced, 7889 CR 10, in New Riegel. Formerly Bubby's, Sauced is running during renovations on a limited menu, currently pizza, salads and subs, Love said. Coming soon will be specialty burgers, appetizers and wings. Pizza is to be the flagship dish. Diners can have a choice of sauce, either spicy, traditional or a house blend of traditional pizza with alfredo sauce."We have new sauce and new dough and want to serve quality ingredients," Erin said. Erin said she used to work at Bubby's during the summer while in high school."Finding this space available was very surreal for me," she said. Alex worked at Carmies for about nine years and said it was hard to leave."As a family, we decided it was time now," Alex said. "We always wanted to own our own business." The restaurant is still new, having opened earlier this month, but Alex said they have received a great amount of support from the community. "It is humbling and overwhelming," Alex said. "Being in a small community we have had great support. The people are behind us." While renovations continue, Alex said they will remain open."We felt it (closing) wouldn't be fair to our staff and customers." The restaurant renovations include painting, building a bigger bar, a banquet room with a stage — to support local, live entertainment — outdoor space along with a closed in patio. There are sand pits for volleyball; Alex said they hope to start leagues in the future. In addition to the restaurant, there is to be a drive-through for pick-up orders and any other item, such as chips, beer, soda and more.All food and products are being bought locally, Alex said. "We want to support local and buy our products from local providers," he said. "We will have good meat that is grass fed, free range and find our produce from local farmers." Alex said they are moving forward making changes slowly."We want to do what we do, and do it right," Alex said. They are welcoming feedback from the community. "We are going to see what works and what doesn't and make changes as we go," Alex said. For more about Sauced, they are on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram and their website is coming soon. To make an order, call (419) 595-3663.