BALDWINSVILLE — After working in the restaurant business for 13 years, Tammy Panebianco decided to strike out on her own and open her own eatery this spring. On April 22, she opened Dani’s Dessert & Wine Bar at 56 Oswego St. in the village of Baldwinsville — in the former location of dessert restaurant Lala […]
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BALDWINSVILLE — After working in the restaurant business for 13 years, Tammy Panebianco decided to strike out on her own and open her own eatery this spring.
On April 22, she opened Dani’s Dessert & Wine Bar at 56 Oswego St. in the village of Baldwinsville — in the former location of dessert restaurant Lala Land. Panebianco is renting her space from Dennis Sick, the owner of this building and other properties on the block.
Dani’s Dessert & Wine Bar encompasses about 1,500 square feet and can seat up to 42 people. Panebianco has three employees, each of whom are either a close friend or a family member. This includes the chef who is her sister-in-law. Two of the employees work part time and one works full time.
Panebianco says she comes from a family of restaurant owners, including relatives associated with eateries like Bittersweet Wine Bar and Desserts in downtown Syracuse, 916 Riverside Restaurant in Brewerton, and Jake’s Grub and Grog in Brewerton.
When Panebianco rented the Baldwinsville space, the only thing in the kitchen area was a sink and an electric stove. She ripped everything out and installed all new equipment. Her boyfriend and son-in-law acted as her contractors and built her bar, she says.
Panebianco found pictures of what she wanted the restaurant to look like in order to design her space exactly how she wanted it. With the help of her family members, she was able to carry it out.
In the first month of business, almost every seat at Dani’s Dessert & Wine Bar was taken during the bar’s busy hours. Seating works on a first come, first serve basis, but VIP seating is available with advanced reservations. In the second month, Panebianco noticed that business slowed down, but she expected this change.
In order to finance her business venture, she dipped into her retirement fund — taking a big risk, she says. She declined to disclose the specific amount.
In Baldwinsville, Panebianco is mostly surrounded by pizza restaurants so she feels she faces no real competition in the dessert and wine bar space.
Dani’s Dessert & Wine Bar’s menu includes meat and cheese boards to share, shareable tapas, sliders, flatbread, desserts like a brownie sundae with ice cream and a carrot cake, and wine and craft beer.
Dani’s target customer base includes women ages 25 to 50 and business people.
Panebianco shops for groceries multiple times a week to provide only fresh ingredients. She purchases much of her produce from local farms when possible.
Panebianco obtains her cheese from Renzi Foodservice in Watertown and her meats from Palmer Food Services in Rochester. The items that are not in season, she purchases from Wegmans.
Panebianco says her future plans for Dani’s Dessert & Wine Bar are to get into catering for events that range from personal to business-oriented. Another idea she has is to acquire another location in an area similar to Baldwinsville.