By Carol Stiffler
Joe and Avonna Crabill (pronounced “cray-bill”) became the new owners of Seder’s Pizza & More last Thursday, and opened the restaurant on time the next day. The restaurant staff stayed on.
They see themselves as the “next caretakers” of the storied Newberry business, which they purchased from Jo Tranchita. Chef Joe Crabill graduated from culinary school at Ivy Tech Community College in Ft. Wayne, Indiana. He took a culinary tour of southern France while in school and worked in a restaurant after graduation.
“I’ve always cooked,” he said. He and Avonna moved to Newberry a decade ago. He loves feeding people and watching their reactions.
Joe Crabill says the menu won’t change much. Seders will still offer wood-fired pizza, sandwiches, subs, and soups. He will add to the menu in time, and has already introduced a citrus chipotle BBQ chicken pizza. That pizza features a sauce he created and results in a very popular pie.
“It’s very well balanced,” he said. “There’s nothing that overpowers anything. Even the heat level is pretty tolerant for most people.”
The Crabills are fairly well known around Newberry. They’re also active at the Luce County Animal Shelter, where Joe sits on the board and Avonna volunteers. They recently adopted Buddy, a challenging pup who had a long stay at the shelter before developing a close bond with Joe. Joe spent part of the day Monday cooking at the Pet Pals pancake supper fundraiser.
He is open to customer feedback and suggestions. “If they suggest something, we’ll look into it. If it’s feasible we’ll give it a try and see how it goes,” Joe said. “If there’s something they don’t like, you’re not going to hurt my feelings if you tell me you didn’t like this, or whatever. I can’t fix it if I don’t know what’s wrong. Maybe a sauce is too salty or spicy. I can fix that, but if you don’t tell me, it is not going to get fixed.”
Seder’s Pizza & More will continue to make pizza and bread dough by hand daily. They’ll be open Tuesday through Saturday from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Soup will be available daily, and Joe plans to serve soup on a weekly rotation. This week’s flavor is cream of mushroom soup. Next week he will try to introduce dessert pizzas. Next year, he might bring his smoker to town for an evening of wings and ribs.
In his first two days as the owner-operator of the restaurant, guests were warm and encouraging.
“Everybody has been very supportive so far,” he said. “I’m trying to be, in return, supportive of them and the community.”
The Crabills are not planning a grand opening or public celebration, but prefer to get right to work carrying on the Seder’s Pizza tradition. He invites the community to check out the restaurant, especially if they haven’t been there in a while.
“Seder’s Pizza is a Newberry tradition,” Joe said. “It’s been here so long. Everybody knows it.”