By Dr. Ralph J. Turner
HQ 56 | SUMMER/AUTUMN 2005
Muriale, 58, often referred to as the “Prince of Pasta” in the Tri-State, is owner of Rocco’s Ristorante in Ceredo, W. Va., and chief executive officer for a new Italian specialty foods plant under construction near Ashland, Ky., where he expects to start production in November.
Muriale came from Clarksburg, W. Va., to the Huntington area in 1977 in search of a future. The start of that future was Rocco’s, his Italian restaurant in a small rented space along Main Street in Ceredo. Friend Frank Lucente, an entrepreneur and owner of Sam’s Hot Dog Stands franchising, had urged him to come to Huntington for years.
Earlier, it looked as if Muriale’s career would be in music. He majored in music at Fairmont State University. He attended the U. S. Navy School of Music for six months and played saxophone, clarinet, flute and oboe for three years in the U. S. Army. But his thoughts always drifted to restaurants.
He experienced his first real taste of the restaurant business in 1960 at age 13 in Clarksburg.
“Joe Minard asked me if I wanted to work for him at his restaurant,” he said. “That was like a sacred place. Minard’s was the place to go. The restaurant business was nothing like it is today. There were no malls, no Wendy’s and no McDonald’s. Saturday mornings you got dressed up and took the bus to town.
“At work, I listened and did everything they told me to do. It didn’t take long before I seemed to have a knack for the business. I was a dreamer. I sat on the corner and just watched sleek cars go by and I would think, ‘I’ve got to get one of those cars one of these days – one of these days.’
“I saw my dad – he was always struggling. The factories laid off people at Christmas. My dad quit school in the ninth grade to help provide for his family. I was encouraged even then to find a place for a restaurant. It was always hard to find something you could afford in 1962-63. We never did find a place then due to lack of money and lack of confidence, so I went into the Army in 1966.
“Two and a-half years after my enlistment my dad called and said they were thinking about getting a restaurant. It was Dick’s Drive-in in Fairmont. It was one of those places with speakers outside where cars could drive in and order food.”
During his Army years Muriale also worked in restaurants – a couple of pizza places and a sub shop in Atlantic City.
“I was excited about the family restaurant operated by my dad and uncle,” he said. “After the Army, I worked for them. Somewhere around 1974-75 I realized it was their business and I was searching to find my own style. A good friend, Frank Lucente, kept insisting I come to Huntington to open a restaurant.
“I wanted to go, but wasn’t sure of my restaurant skills. I knew my way around in the kitchen, but running a business is different.”
Eventually, Muriale gave in to Lucente’s encouragement to come to Huntington.
“I was coming down here to find a corner store with a drive through where I could sell pizza and sandwiches and maybe have a little deli,” Muriale said.
“I couldn’t find the kind of building I wanted, but Frank owned this little building and so, by accident, I got into the kind of restaurant business I’m in now.”
Muriale said the business has gone well. At first, there were only enough tables to seat 40. Business increased and the main dining area now seats 85 with an adjacent room increasing the total to 135.
Many of his recipes came from Clarksburg. “There are lots of Italians there and a lot of ethnic families,” Muriale said. “I had some basic things I made from the house. I knew how to cook spaghetti, and how to make lasagna and manicotti – very basic staples – and started with that. I think, maybe, people saw the uniqueness of the place, the food was good, portions were right and the price was right.
“Back in 1977 there was no Food Channel on TV and few hip people here attuned to good food. Fine dining was just something one would experience when they traveled to places like Washington, D.C. or New York.”
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