Things to do in Dayton | Restaurants, Theatre, Music and More
Today is the first day of retirement for Rick Schaefer, the CEO of Brock Mastersons Catering. “It’s been 38 years,” Schaefer said. “It’s been a great run.” Rick worked his first festival in 1987 with his mom (who owned Nancy’s Porches in Oakwood) and a couple of employees. They set up the grill, making reubens, grilled salmon and pork chops. A neighboring vendor said “you’ll never last serving up that stuff,” but 38 years later Rick sure proved him wrong. When you see the Brock Masterson’s banner art festivals you knew you were gonna get some great crab cakes, hash with dill sauces and salmon.
Schafer says, “I can’t paint or draw, but cooking is my art.” He recalls that southern comfort food and family cooking together are the best memories of his childhood. Watching him grandma and aunt cooking were the the genesis that got him into cooking.
Rick has bottled his seasoning so you can use them at home. There are 5 flavors: Beef, Poultry, Pork, Seafood and Fiesta Dust, available at all 3 Dot’s Markets.
Brock Masterson’s was born in the back of his mother’s restaurant, staging for the festivals they cooked for. When I asked about where the name came from, Rick explained that Brock was his moms maiden name and Masterston’ was his partners(and now ex-wife) mother’s maiden name. Together they thought it sounded very authentic Irish.
In 2011 Rick brought on Traci M. Torkelson-Tobin to the business and he says she put us on the catering map. He calls Traci “his secret weapon under the radar, kicking ass. She’s been a real honor to have as part of the business” and as he made his retirement plans, he agreed to sell the company to Traci and her daughter Caitlyn. He says he’s burned out on cooking, cutting, cooling batches of 700 lbs of potatoes to make hash. He won’t miss making those huge quantities ever again.
Before the sale was final, they moved the kitchen to a new spot at Cross Pointe Center in Centerville, which tripled their prep space and gives them a 50 seat room for special events and cooking classes.
riding his bike
Rick said he feels good about stepping away now, with the business in good hands. He says the key to their success has been that they’re OCD about avoiding problems. In cooking for the Kettering Hospital Heart to Heart dinner for 500 in attendance, they make 600 meals. They over prepare, come early, stay late. It never got routine, weddings, company picnic, he never lost the rush.
While he was making these changes, he also sold his house in Oakwood and has downsized to a condo, so he can spend his retirement doing more traveling, which he loves to do. He also plans to keep riding his bike and playing tennis, and finds ways to give back to the community that he shares has been so good to him. “Dying broke is a success, he shared and plans to spend his savings exploring the world.
We wish all the best in his next chapter and thanks for all the great food!
Culture Works is pleased to announce the Co-Chairs of the 2024 Campaign for the Arts: Bing Davis as the Artistic Chair, and Rodney Veal as the Community Chair.
Willis “Bing” Davis is an internationally renowned artist with art in public and private collections around the world. He is the recipient of numerous awards, including the Ohio Governor’s Irma Lazarus Lifetime Achievement Award in 2009, the highest art award given in the state of Ohio. In addition to his artistic work, Bing Davis is known for his creative and innovative approach to teaching, learning, and human development through the arts resulted in his receiving state, national and international acclaim.
Bing grew up in Dayton, Ohio. He left when he attended DePauw University in Greencastle, Indiana, graduating in 1959. He also attended the school of the Dayton Art Institute and received his Master of Education degree in 1967 from Miami University, Oxford, Ohio. He has traveled all over the world, but continues to call Dayton home and demonstrates his commitment by residing and working in the community. When he retired from teaching in 1998, he opened the Davis Art Studio and EbonNia Gallery in the historic Wright-Dunbar Business District. He has continued offering youth and community art and cultural activities through SHANGO: Center for the Study of African American Art and Culture. Bing is a leading advocate for diversity in both the arts and in our community, and Culture Works is thrilled to have him advocate for the arts and Culture Works as Artistic Chair of the campaign.
“One of the reasons it is important for people to support the arts in Dayton is that the arts add such a quality to life that cannot be added any other way. Art is one of the best ways to…touch all people in all neighborhoods,” said Bing. He added, “Contributing to the arts is one of the best ways to touch all people and to add a richness to living. It gives us all a good feeling to contribute to something so worthwhile – art, music, dance, drama, and creative words.”
Rodney Veal is the host of the Art Show on Think TV, and the podcast “Inspired By.” He has a long association with the arts in Dayton and with Culture Works, where he worked (in 1999) as special assistant to then President John Clark. Rodney has also received MCACD grants and fellowships through Culture Works. He is known for his work as an independent choreographer and interdisciplinary artist, and his works have been performed as part of the Ohio Dance Festival and other regional dance festivals. More recently, Rodney has worked as an adjunct faculty member for Sinclair Community College. He is also a visual artist, and just mounted a show at Indie West. A native Daytonian, Rodney is a graduate of Eastern Michigan University with a B.S in Political Science and Visual Arts and he has an MFA in Choreography from The Ohio State University. Rodney is President of the Board of Trustees of Ohio Dance and serves on the boards of Friends of Levitt Pavilions Dayton, Dayton Live, Dayton Performing Arts Alliance, WYSO and Homefull.
Rodney commented, “Culture Works serves as a protector of the arts ecosystem in the region, to make sure that this platform is there for people and organizations who create art, and to elevate the creativity that occurs there. They play a necessary role in ensuring that there is a fair and equitable distribution of funding and services to artists of all kinds. We need voices at the table from artists who are creating and sharing their stories from many different and wonderful backgrounds, and they need to be supported. Culture Works provides the opportunity for all those different voices to be heard and their creativity to be experienced, which makes our community that much richer and more special.”
2024 marks the 50th year of Culture Works sustaining, promoting, and advocating for the arts community in the Dayton Region. Formed in 1974 as the Dayton Arts Fund, the organization was charged with raising funds for arts groups in critical need. Individuals and businesses were asked for contributions by volunteers whose goal was to increase the number of donors to the arts. Robert A. Kerr, one of the organizers of the Arts Fund, identified the orchestra, ballet, and opera as the areas of “most critical current need,” and noted “the Dayton Arts Fund later might be expanded to include groups other than the three now covered.” (Journal Herald of October 18, 1974) Additional recipients of Campaign for the Arts funding were added including the Dayton Contemporary Dance Company, Muse Machine, The Human Race Theatre Company, the Springfield Symphony, and more.
During its 50 years, Culture Works has adapted to meet the changing needs of the arts community. Bing Davis, Artistic Chair of the 2024 Campaign for the Arts, was part of the 1992 community initiative that led to the merger of the arts fund with the Miami Valley Arts Council, to become the Miami Valley Arts Alliance. The organization became both a united arts fund and a local arts agency, adding to the region we serve and to our mission. In 1994, the Arts Alliance was rebranded as Culture Works.
As a United Arts Fund, Culture Works still raises funds for arts organization’s most critical needs, but also introduced a grants panel review system that invites community voices into decisions regarding dispersal of community supported grant funding. As a Local Arts Agency, Culture Works advocates for the inclusion of art and artists in development projects, pursues local, state, and national funding, provides support and services for arts organizations, runs artist support programs–including professional development for individual artists–develops outreach to build connections between the creative and business sectors, and initiatives that improve our community and our schools.
The annual Campaign for the Arts, which is Culture Works’ principal grants program, unites gifts from individual donors, corporate supporters, and workplace giving campaigns into funding for Community Arts Grants. Community volunteers award general operating support to local arts organizations through an open panel application review process.
Last fall the husband/ wife team of Xiaxing Lin and Ryan Chen bought the Cross Pointe location of Boosalis Baking and Cafe from Matt Boosalis in a quiet transaction. They got all the recipes and said they would keep baking all the customer favorites. Matt is currently running the Kenwood location.
They just reopened this week from a three week shutdown for some remodeling and new equipment. The dining room has been newly painted and new lighting has been installed as well as additional seating. Bakery manager Mindy told us there are still some more changes to come in the dining room.
The biggest changes have been made behind the scenes. They’ve added some new equipment that includes a Polin Proofer/ Retarder which allows them to automate the cycle of fermentation set the prooving cycle to follow the times of day when they are the busiest. They also added a Polin Oven, which automatically rotates the pans to keep temperature even so baker Xiaxing doesn’t have to keep bending down and manually to rotate the product.
175 E Alex Bell Rd. Ste 280
Centerville, OH 45459
(937) 424-0636
Hours:
Tues – Fri 7am – 4pm
Sat 8am – 3pm
Pettibone Coffee on Woodman Drive launches their spring menu on 3/21/24. Here’s a little preview of some of the hightlights:
Pettibone Coffee Roastery & Cafe
215 Woodman Drive
Riverside, OH 45431
Mon-Fri 6am-7pm
Sat-Sun 7am-7pm
Kitchen is open until 3pm daily
Let Us Make You Lunch:
Overstuffed 1/3 lb. Sandwich on Rye featuring your choice of Carnegie Deli Corned Beef or Mrs. Goldfarb’s Unreal Corned Beef (Plant-Based), Cole Slaw, Dill Pickle, Brownie & Drink (carry-out or delivery)
Corned Beef by the Pound:
Carnegie Deli Corned Beef or Mrs. Goldfarb’s Unreal Corned Beef (Plant-Based)
$20 per meal
$20 per pound
$5 per slice of Cheesecake
DELIVERY AVAILABLE!
Order 10 or more lunches and we will deliver your order for $10.00 per local address (limited delivery area).
There’s a new brunch spot to check out every Saturday starting this week. W. Social Tap & Table on Third Street in Wright Dunbar VIllage will be serving up a special menu from 10am to 2pm.
ILLY’S Fire Pizza will feature breakfast pizza with your choice of bacon, sausage or oxtail with egg and cheese, as well as breakfast sandwiches and garlic knots and gravy. The restaurant now offers beef products, in addition to turkey.
Jasmine Brown of De’Lish was well known for her chicken and waffles when she had a restaurant on Main Street and will be recreating that well loved dish and will also offer a sweet potato waffles and chicken. Her waffle is vegan made from Dayton’s own Uncle Boof’s World Famous Pancake Mix.
SOCA will offer mild jerk chicken (of course they can kick up the spice if you like), breakfast potatoes, biscuits and gravy, sandwiches, grits, chicken and waffles and pancakes.
Taco Street Co. will have breakfast burritos with chicken or bacon, three different breakfast tacos featuring chicken, bacon or turkey sausage with queso cheese, shredded cheese, eggs, pico and home fries.
And what’s brunch without breakfast cocktails? Special offer for Marchf: buy one bottle of champagne and get the second one half off!
Monday – Thursday 11am – 10pm
Friday – Saturday 11am – 11pm
Saturday 10am – 2pm – Brunch
11am – 11pm – Lunch & Dinner
Established in 2011, Lucky’s Taproom & Eatery in the Oregon District is celebrating 13 years in business this weekend! A full-service bar and restaurant in Dayton’s Historic Oregon District. The atmosphere is comfortable, superior quality service is provided based on a teamwork approach, and delicious food is served at a reasonable price.
Proud to have two flat top grills so that true vegan food choices are available, Lucky’s also serves traditional food and vegetarian options as well. There are weekly homemade specials, homemade soups and unique homemade desserts.
Lucky’s, with twenty revolving beer taps, is also proud to be able to provide you with the largest selection of craft draft beers in the Oregon District. New selections are available often. Quality cocktails are also available at reasonable prices.
Owner, Andrew Trick, has over thirty years’ experience in the industry and is happy to offer you a place where you can relax, enjoy a good beer, watch a game and share some good times with friends.
520 East Fifth Street
Oregon District, Dayton, Ohio 45402
937-222-6800
Saturday & Sunday Brunch 11am-2pm
Sunday – Thursday 11am-10pm
Friday & Saturday 11am-11pm
Victor’s Taco Shop opens their 14th location today on Far Hills Avenue, in a spot that was formerly Taco Bell. Not familiar with this family owned business? It was started in 2008 by partners Hector & Victor, the first two locations were in Marion and the city of Delaware in central Ohio.
According to co-owner Jonathan Gaytan, Victor’s Tacos is named after Gaytan’s father. Partner Hector Gonzales has also opened a few Hector’s Taco’s on his own, but still parters with Jonathan and his father to grow. Victor’s Tacos is unique because everything is made fresh daily, and the food is the same high quality as a sit down restaurant, but with the speed of fast food. Jonathan told us he’d had his eye on this Far Hills locations for about 4 years, but every time he inquired it was under contract to another business, and then he’d be contacted and he was in the middle of another opening, but finally the timing worked and he was able to get the building under contract.
Victor’s features a variety of Mexican specialties, including tacos, enchiladas, burritos, taquitos and tostadas, as well as omelets and breakfast burritos. Protien choices include Carne Asada (sliced beef), Carnitas (pork), Adobada (marinated pork), breaded fish, shrimp, and grilled chicken.
The menu is pretty extensive and they serve the breakfast burritos all day long. At last night’s sneak peek about 20 guests were treated to a free meal and the reviews from the diners were great. Food came out quickly and many of us ended up walking out with to-go boxes due to the generous portions. This opening week Jonathan says they’l be open 10am – 10pm and by next week they’ll begin opening daily at 8am. Next up for Victor’s, expanding to Columbus and Cincinnati.
5837 Far Hills Ave.
Washington Twp, OH
Eric Mahoney, the filmmaker behind the Yellow Springs Film Festival has just announced he’ll be hosting a one day “MINI-FEST” on Saturday April 6th at the Little Art Theatre in Yellow Springs!
He shared that this is halfway between last years festival and the Oct 4-6 2024 festival, “so it just seemed to think the mini-fest was a great way to keep the film festival in peoples minds. This will be the first time for folks to see these films and we’re excited to share them with film fans.”
Featuring films fresh off their premieres at Sundance / SXSW / Venice and see live conversations with visiting Directors. Tickets to all films and events on sale now for all 4 event/screening for $15-20. The Little Art seats just around 100, so buy your tickets online before they sell out.
Documentary about performance artist and “song and dance man” Andy Kaufman
The word burrito means “little donkey” in Spanish, the diminutive form of burro, or “donkey”. The name burrito, as applied to the dish, possibly derives from the tendency for burritos to contain a lot of different things similar to how a donkey would be able to carry a large burden. We’ve wrapped up many of the deals on tortilla-wrapped meals:
When loyalty members buy one burrito at Bubbakoo’s Burritos on April 4, they’ll get a coupon for another free one. The offer is valid at all locations and the coupon is redeemable at a future date.
ChipotleIn honor of National Burrito Day, Chipotle is rolling out a new interactive game, Burrito Vault. Here’s how it works: Visit unlockburritoday.com starting at 12 p.m. on April 2 and 3.
If you’re one of the first 50,000 players to guess the correct Chipotle order each day and unlock the Burrito Vault, you’ll score a BOGO code (redeemable on April 4) and be entered into a sweepstakes for the chance to win free burritos for a year. Players have four chances to win each day.
In addition, Chipotle is offering rewards members $0 delivery on April 4 with the code DELIVER online and in the app at participating U.S. and Canada locations. The offer is valid with a minimum $10 order and a maximum $200 order and isn’t valid on catering, Burritos by the Box orders or third-party delivery.
On April 4, Moe’s Southwest Grill has a buy one, get one free deal on burritos and bowls. The offer is valid when you order online, in the Moe’s app or in-store at participating locations nationwide. The free item must be of equal or lesser value (add-ons, extras, premium proteins, taxes, fees and catering are excluded), and the offer isn’t valid with other offers or third-party delivery.
In addition, Moe’s is running a National Burrito Day giveaway on April 4 and will offer 100 customers the opportunity to win free burritos for a year (52 burrito rewards, one issued each week of the year). Customers can enter in one of two ways:
National Burrito Day is kind of a big deal at Qdoba. On April 4, rewards members will be treated to a free burrito when they buy an entrée and drink. The offer is valid online, in the app or in restaurants.
Between April 4 — 6 Sheetz customers can get $2 off made-to-order burritos at all locations. To score the deal, simply clip the offer in the Sheetz app.
On National Burrito Day, when you buy one burrito in the Taco Bell app, you can get a second one of equal or lesser value for 50% off (1 per user). That includes the Cantina Chicken Burrito, which is part of the chain’s recently launched Cantina Chicken Menu, made with slow-roasted, spiced and shredded chicken.
Taco John’s loyalty program members will be treated to $2 off any Meat and Potato Burrito Combo on April 4. To score the deal, you need to download the app and sign up for Bigger Bolder Rewards by April 3.
Fairborn’s Tudor’s Biscuit World closed at the end of January and a new restaurant is already on their way to opening there. Chef Suwapat Whitted, the chef owner behind Thai Kitchen, Thia Table and Hello Thai has announced she’ll be opening Honey Toast Breakfast & Brunch in that spot on Broad Street in Fairborn.
130 N Broad Street,
Fairborn, OH 45324
Wed – Mon 6am – 2pm
As we reported here in late 2023, Franco’s had put their business up for sale. Owner Franco Germano., who opened the restaurant on Fifth St in October 1976 at age 31, passed away in March of 2018, leaving his son and widow to run the business.
Today we share the news that in March, there will be a new owner. Mo, who owns Jimmies Italian restaurant over on Woodman Drive has purchased Francos. He would like to keep all the current employees.
We’ve heard his plan is to shutdown the Fifth Street building in late March to do a little remodeling.
He plans to continue to operate the Woodman restaurant, that was originally a Taco Bell before it was turned into an amazing Italian eatery.
Tokyo Grill & Sushi Buffet opened yesterday in the space that was formerly Bravo at Bravo at the Fairfield Commons Mall. They specialize in Japanese style cuisine. They offer all you can eat Sushi Bar as well as create your own Hibachi Grill bowls. They feature fresh seafood, meats, and plenty of fruits, and vegetables.
When you enter they give you a bowl to load with ingredients for your hibachi grill bowls. So many choices, broccoli, mushrooms, water chestnuts, onions, carrots, peppers, jalapeno, zucchni, garlic, tofu, pork, chicken, beef, krab and more. You select your choice of rice, fried rice, or noodles, than the grill staff will cook it and your server will return it to your table.
After you turn in your hibachi ingredients, you can select individual portion of appetizers that include spring rolls, fried shrimp , asparagus, stuffed jalapenos, crag rangoon, tempura sweet potato, stuffed krab meat, buffalo chicken, green beans, coconut chicken and sesame beef. Two soups are also offered each day.
Turn the corner and you’ll see a huge variety of fresh sushi
At the end of the sushi, they were over 20 different rolls to choose from , you’ll find salads, including seaweed and octopus, edamame, smoked trout amongst them.
And if you’ve still got room, be sure and check out the refrigerator full of small desserts.
Perhaps you prefer an ice cream treat to end you meal, they have that, too.
Tokyo Grill, Sushi & Hibachi Buffet
2731 Fairfield Commons
Beavercreek, OH 45431
937-988-0011
Lunch 11am – 3:30pm Mon – Sat
Adults $21.99
Child 11-12 $16.99
Child 7-10 $10.99
Child 3-6 $7.99
Dinner 3:35- Close Mon – Sat
Adults $31.99
Child 11-12 $19.99
Child 7-10 $13.99
Child 3-6 $10.99
Take Out Prices
Hibachi Bowls to go – lunch $17.99, dinner $19.99
Sushi Bar to go – lunch $21.00, dinner $24.99
Big Brothers Big Sisters Miami Valley makes meaningful, monitored matches between adult volunteers and youth, ages 6 through 18, in communities across the region. We develop positive relationships that have a direct and lasting effect on the lives of young people.
Here’s your chance to support Big Brothers Big Sisters and also have a chance to win a bourbon barrel bar with LED and 5 bottles of recommended bourbon.
Purchase your tickets now for a shot at winning a one-of-a-kind bourbon barrel bar package, complete with 5 top shelf bourbons along with a custom backlit bourbon barrel bar. 100% of the proceeds from ticket sales go to Big Brothers Big Sisters.
But hurry, you can purchase your tickets online. They are available only until March 8th, priced at just $20 each. Don’t miss your shot at winning and supporting a great cause!
Drawing will be held live on Facebook on March 9th at 12:00.
