Soul rolls, Big Mac pizzas: These 5 restaurants opened in Summit County in March

Tawney Beans and Kerry Clawson, Akron Beacon Journal
Updated ·10 min read

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March saw the opening of two soul restaurants in Akron’s Northside and Chapel Hill neighborhoods, with the latter also doubling as a karaoke bar. Pizza joints owned by unlikely characters popped up in Green and Brimfield, one of whom already has hopes to expand. And a milkshake and burger joint with a Cleveland location finally opened one in Akron.

We visited each one to see what they have to offer. Here’s what you need to know.

This is not an exhaustive list of all restaurants that opened in March, but you can help us make it more complete by contacting Beacon Journal reporters Tawney Beans at tbeans@gannett.com and Kerry Clawson at kclawson@thebeaconjournal.com with tips on restaurants openings.

The Plannerz Place Eatery

Soul food has found a home in Akron’s Northside Marketplace — a space where businesses can rent kitchens, booths and shelf space for their products — by way of The Plannerz Place Eatery.

The new restaurant celebrated its grand opening March 28-30. It offers a rotating menu with southern staples, including fried chicken wings, hoppin’ johns, candied yams and collard greens.

The Plannerz Place Eatery's fried chicken made with Mama T's Special Blend seasoning served with a soul roll, a roll filled with collard greens, sweet potatoes and mac and cheese.
The Plannerz Place Eatery's fried chicken made with Mama T's Special Blend seasoning served with a soul roll, a roll filled with collard greens, sweet potatoes and mac and cheese.

It also has some more unusual offerings, like salmon croquettes, barbecue pig feet and soul rolls — egg roll wrappers stuffed to the brim with collard greens, candied yams and macaroni and cheese, then pan fried to a golden crisp — which some affectionately call “Thanksgiving in a roll.”

Co-owner Tonya Essick grew up in West Akron and began her culinary journey at only 6 years old whipping up breakfast at her father’s encouragement. Four years later she was regularly helping prepare meals at church. Then, at only 13 years old, she helped cater a wedding for the first time.

Tonya Essick, co-owner of The Plannerz Place Eatery, prepares fried chicken in her kitchen at Northside Marketplace.
Tonya Essick, co-owner of The Plannerz Place Eatery, prepares fried chicken in her kitchen at Northside Marketplace.

Essick learned she had a knack for entertaining. In 2019, that passion became The Plannerz LLC, an event planning, catering and meal prep company ran by Essick and her daughters, WyTerria Thornton and Carolyn Clay.

In early 2023, the catering business was outgrowing Essick’s home kitchen and she was on the hunt for retail space for her other business, Mama T’s Seasonings & Spices. A coworker suggested she check out the Northside Marketplace.

She saw the space previously used by The Treatery, a rolled ice cream shop, and knew it was the perfect opportunity to sell her seasonings, expand the catering business and branch out into the traditional restaurant scene.

Customers who can't get enough of The Plannerz Place Eatery's seasoning can purchase Mama T's Special Blend.
Customers who can't get enough of The Plannerz Place Eatery's seasoning can purchase Mama T's Special Blend.

Rotating what’s available to order also allows them to create an expansive menu while limiting food costs and waste. Plus, the system prevents Essick’s restaurant pet peeve: ordering from a restaurant’s menu only to be told its not available that day.

“Our food is made fresh, cooked fresh, made with a lot of love [and] good seasonings,” said Essick. Those good seasonings do include the Mama T’s Seasonings & Spices displayed on a tall rack to the left of the ordering window for customers to peruse while waiting for their food.

While she loves to cook, Essick couldn’t feel more differently about baking. All the sweets at her business are made by another local Black-owned business called Parm’s Pounds.

The Plannerz Place Eatery's mac and cheese is a customer favorite.
The Plannerz Place Eatery's mac and cheese is a customer favorite.

21 Furnace St., Akron; 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Thursday through Saturday, 1 to 5 p.m. Sunday; 330-365-2600; theplannerzplace.com

Jack’s Pizza

The border of Brimfield Township and Tallmadge became home to a new pizza shop as of March 11.

Jack’s Pizza has strombolis, salads, cheesy bread and sandwiches on its menu, but what really sets it apart from other shops is the dough. According to owner Cody Hornyak, it is made using cold fermentation — a technique that gives the crust a more robust flavor and texture after baking — and baked in a Blodgett oven.

“It’s not commercial. It’s not chain. It’s unique,” he said. “I think you find something, you make it good, you stick with that and you stick with only that.”

Family recipes are all over Jack’s menu, from its scratch-made red sauce to meatballs, the latter of which are made using Hornyak’s great-great-grandmother’s recipe from Poland.

Cody Hornyak, owner of Jack's Pizza, takes a Jack's Choice pizza (pepperoni, sausage, ham, bacon, onion, mushrooms, green peppers and black olives) out of the oven at his Brimfield Township eatery.
Cody Hornyak, owner of Jack's Pizza, takes a Jack's Choice pizza (pepperoni, sausage, ham, bacon, onion, mushrooms, green peppers and black olives) out of the oven at his Brimfield Township eatery.

But the most intriguing part of Jack’s Pizza, aside from its dedication to scratch-made slices, is the story behind its namesake.

Neither Hornyak nor anyone else in his family is named Jack.

Jack’s Pizza both honors and pokes fun at Hornyak’s father, John Jr., who passed away in 2020. Growing up, John was nicknamed Jack and despised it. Hornyak’s brother was John III and the restaurant owner named his son John IV.

“When my son was born, my mom was being a jerk to my dad and goes, ‘Here Johnny, it’s your papa Jack,’” said Hornyak. “So, the Jack went away for a few years, and then when my son was born, it came back tenfold. He’d be smacking me if he was here right now.”

All the pizzas on Jack’s menu are named after friends and family members, but the supreme pizza, called Jack’s Choice, was John Jr.’s go-to order at whatever pizza shop he happened upon.

The naming process for the business may have been unorthodox, but Hornyak himself does not fit the mold of the average restaurateur.

Cody Hornyak, owner of Jack's Pizza, hand tosses pizza dough in his in Brimfield Township eatery.
Cody Hornyak, owner of Jack's Pizza, hand tosses pizza dough in his in Brimfield Township eatery.

Prior to opening Jack’s, Hornyak worked as an operations manager at General Aluminum Mfg. in Rootstown and then went on to be a plant manager at Quala, a tank cleaning and maintenance company in Cleveland.

The lengthy hours and commute made him feel as though he was losing his sanity, so last year Hornyak decided to step outside of his comfort zone. His retirement plan was always to either work in Home Depot’s plumbing section or open a pizza joint.

In September, he got the keys to what was once Dicky’s Barbecue Pit and set to work opening Jack’s Pizza, which has monthly pizza specials alongside its normal menu. April’s specialty pie is modeled after the Big Mac with a house-made Mac sauce, ground beef, onions, cheese and, after baking, covered in lettuce, pickles and a drizzle of Mac sauce.

3975 Cascades Blvd., Kent; 4 to 9 p.m. Monday through Wednesday, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Thursday and Friday, 4 to 9 p.m. Saturday; 234-233-1494; jackspizzaohio.com

Sweetbeats Sports & Soul Food Karaoke Bar

A new spot for soul food, karaoke and catching a game is in the former 4 Leaf Pub & Eatery in Akron’s Chapel Hill neighborhood.

Owners Lamar and KeJuana Jones opened Sweetbeats Sports & Soul Food Karaoke Bar March 16. Their goal with the new space is to create an atmosphere that doubles as a sexy sports bar and family friendly soul food restaurant — plus live music thrown in.

Lamar and KeJuana Jones, owners of Sweetbeats Sports & Soul Food Karaoke Bar, talk about their vision for the restaurant and the feedback they've gotten from their patrons as they sit at the bar of the Akron eatery on April 11.
Lamar and KeJuana Jones, owners of Sweetbeats Sports & Soul Food Karaoke Bar, talk about their vision for the restaurant and the feedback they've gotten from their patrons as they sit at the bar of the Akron eatery on April 11.

“When we're talking to our consumers, they always say ‘Akron needs this. We needed a place for mature adults to be able to come,'” said KeJuana. The owners emphasized that children are welcome as well, and they have the tableside ice cream machines available to prove it.

The sexy sports bar criteria is covered by the more than a dozen screens and projectors displaying various sports games, three pool tables and an extra long bar in the middle of the restaurant.

Chef James Tyler sprinkles seasoning on the fried catfish in the kitchen of Sweetbeats Sports & Soul Food Karaoke Bar in Akron.
Chef James Tyler sprinkles seasoning on the fried catfish in the kitchen of Sweetbeats Sports & Soul Food Karaoke Bar in Akron.

Chef James Tyler whips up delicious soul food classics — various fried fishes, deviled eggs with candied bacon, fried green tomatoes — to check off the culinary section of the Jones’ dream.

The flash fry on the fish gives it a thin and crispy outer shell, but the real gem of the place may be its collard greens. Beacon Journal photojournalist Mike Cardew has made his way to the southern United States several times and said that while often collard greens turn out too bitter or too salt-laden, these were perfect — and I would have to agree.

Lamar has been DJing for more than 30 years and has always dreamed of owning his own bar. KeJuana is an educator and has fulfilled many of her own aspirations but wanted to see her husband’s dreams come to fruition.

The fried catfish platter is pictured with collard greens and candied yams and a plate of fried green tomatoes as an appetizer at Sweetbeats Sports & Soul Food Karaoke Bar in Akron.
The fried catfish platter is pictured with collard greens and candied yams and a plate of fried green tomatoes as an appetizer at Sweetbeats Sports & Soul Food Karaoke Bar in Akron.

“I'm a graduate of Mississippi Valley State University, which is an HBCU, and I'm really used to home-cooked food,” KeJuana said. “We wanted to create a place where love is. When you think of the people of the south, they are sweet people. So, he does beats − that’s how we became Sweetbeats.”

Once the weather is consistently warm, they plan to use their outside patio for live rhythm and blues performances. For right now, they’re using it to grill on Saturdays and Sundays.

1954 Buchholzer Blvd., Akron; 3 to 10 p.m. Sunday and Monday, 3 to 11 p.m. Tuesday, 3 to 10 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday, 3 p.m. to 2:30 a.m. Friday and Saturday; 234-208-8590; facebook.com/Sweetbeatsoh

Kittle’s Brick Oven Pub

A Royal Feast pizza, made with pepperoni, sausage, bacon, onions, olives, basil and shaved parmesan, comes out of the brick oven in the kitchen of Kittle's Brick Oven Pub in Green.
A Royal Feast pizza, made with pepperoni, sausage, bacon, onions, olives, basil and shaved parmesan, comes out of the brick oven in the kitchen of Kittle's Brick Oven Pub in Green.

What was once Papa’s Brick Oven Pub (and prior to that, Deluca Pizza Pub,) reopened under new owner Jordan Kittle as Kittle’s Brick Oven Pub March 11.

While their pepperoni pizza and strombolis are popular, another bestseller is the royal feast, which has pepperoni, sausage, bacon, diced red onion and black olives. The pub also specializes in old-fashioned cocktails.

Its pool tables, dart boards and jukebox create a cozy bar atmosphere perfect for both dinner with the family or late-night drinks with friends.

Kittle has kept the pizza recipes from Papa’s Brick Oven Pub and is looking into integrating recipes handed down from the former owner of Deluca’s Pizza Pub.

So, why has the same space harbored three pizza shops since Deluca’s opened in late 2019?

A Royal Feast pizza, made with pepperoni, sausage, bacon, onions, olives, basil and shaved parmesan, bakes in the brick oven in the kitchen of Kittle's Brick Oven Pub in Green.
A Royal Feast pizza, made with pepperoni, sausage, bacon, onions, olives, basil and shaved parmesan, bakes in the brick oven in the kitchen of Kittle's Brick Oven Pub in Green.

Likely because of the massive brick pizza oven that’s inherited with the building. Deluca’s owners bought it for about $50,000, according to Kittle, who dubbed it “the Lamborghini of brick ovens for pizzas.”

The pub owner spends his days working as a software engineer, his career before his first foray into entrepreneurship. Kittle’s computer skills shine through the logo, menu and tabletop adverts he designed for the new eatery.

This raises another question: Why would a software engineer want to open a restaurant?

Jordan Kittle is the owner of Kittle's Brick Oven Pub in Green.
Jordan Kittle is the owner of Kittle's Brick Oven Pub in Green.

Kittle was looking for a business to acquire within a reasonable distance from his home in Plain Township, and Papa’s Brick Oven Pub fit the bill. He plans to open two more Kittle’s locations next year, possibly in Canton and Akron or Cuyahoga Falls.

“There's not a lot of pizza places that you go in and sit down and eat it,” Kittle said. “This is a place where you can go and hang out and eat pizza, play some pool and enjoy your night. I think it's kind of a unique concept.”

3700 Massillon Road, Uniontown; 3 to 10 p.m. Sunday through Thursday, 3 to 11 p.m. Friday and Saturday; 234-294-0640; facebook.com/Kittlesbrickovenpub

Good Company - Akron

Will Hollingsworth, owner of Good Company in Cleveland's Battery Park, opened his second Good Company in Akron March 1.

Originally a fire station, this restaurant's dining room is full of greenery with its faux palms. A gorgeous green mural pops out on the whole back bar wall, reproduced from a painting by Cleveland-area artist Dana Oldfather that's hanging down the hall. The décor, including a multitude of mirrors and framed artwork all over the walls, is a carryover from the Spotted Owl.

Believe it or not, amid this finery, Good Company is a hot spot for wings, burgers and milkshakes.

Bourbon apricot barbecue wings are one of the starters at Good Company in Akron.
Bourbon apricot barbecue wings are one of the starters at Good Company in Akron.

When Beacon Journal reporter Kerry Clawson visited for a Local Flavor article, she thoroughly enjoyed the flavor-packed bourbon apricot barbecue wings. She said the sweet apricot contrasted nicely with the fried garlic on the wings.

Other items Clawson and company enjoyed during their visit were the the house-made soft pretzel (served with white American cheese sauce and brown butter cream cheese), loaded Philly fries, snickerdoodle shakes and The Good One — a smash burger made with two Angus beef patties that are a custom sirloin and beef belly blend topped with griddled onions, malted pickles and more.

The Good One is a double cheeseburger with griddled onions, malted pickles and more at Good Company in Akron.
The Good One is a double cheeseburger with griddled onions, malted pickles and more at Good Company in Akron.

A hot Gabagool sandwich is also on the menu. It's comprised of house-cured capicola ham, Italian-dressed shredded lettuce, pickled banana peppers and American cheese on a house-made poppy seed hoagie roll. The sandwich, named in honor of James Gandolfini and "The Sopranos," was made famous on an episode of Guy Fieri's "Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives" on Food Network in 2022.

The Gabagool sandwich is made with house-cured capicola ham, pickled banana peppers and American cheese at Good Company in Akron.
The Gabagool sandwich is made with house-cured capicola ham, pickled banana peppers and American cheese at Good Company in Akron.

60 S. Maple St., Akron; 4 to 10 p.m. Sunday-Tuesday, closed Wednesday, 4 to 11 p.m. Thursday-Saturday; 330-252-9099; goodcompanyakron.com 

Got a restaurant recommendation? Contact Beacon Journal reporter Tawney Beans at tbeans@gannett.com and on Twitter @TawneyBeans. And follow her food adventures on TikTok @akronbeaconjournal. Arts and restaurant writer Kerry Clawson may be reached at 330-996-3527 or kclawson@thebeaconjournal.com.

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: 5 new restaurants opened in Greater Akron in March. What to know