‘It’s All In the Sauce:’ Lia’s Celebrates 40 Years of Food, Family, and Friends 

At 11:30 a.m. on Aug. 6, a Sunday, the smell of baking lasagna started spreading around Pine Plains. By 1 p.m., it had permeated much of the town. It was a sign that the 40th anniversary celebration at Lia’s Mountain View restaurant was about to kick off. Some 250 diners, including 50 family members from as far as Florida, had to be fed in a single seating. Lia’s would handle the job with brio. Like they always have. 

“We haven’t celebrated [an anniversary] since 2003,” said Mackenzie Killmer, whose grandparents, Giuseppe and Antonina Mirto, founded the storied Italian restaurant. “It’s time to celebrate again. A lot has changed. We’ve lost family members. It’s important to honor that legacy.” 

Running a restaurant had been a dream ever since the Mirtos left Monreale, a small town in the hills near Palermo, Sicily, in 1965, setting sail on the liner Christopher Columbus with their young children Nick, Maria, Lia and Vincenza.   

Giuseppe and Antonina – or Nina for short  – both loved to cook and had a gift for entertaining. Giuseppe’s favorite expression was “A tavola!” – Italian for “Let’s eat!” Upon arriving in New York, the couple first opened a successful restaurant in Yorktown Heights. But they missed the countryside and the opportunity to plant a large garden. 

In May of 1983, the Mirtos bought the small restaurant on Route 82 that was to become Lia’s. “My grandparents fell in love with Pine Plains,” said Killmer. “The people here were so welcoming, and there was that view of the fields and Stissing Mountain.” Gradually their children joined in the business. The Mirtos’ grandchildren grew up in Pine Plains, attending local schools. More than a hundred students from the town worked their first job at Lia’s.  

The food was Southern Italian, infused with the spices of the Middle East, both savory and sweet. It was a hit, and generations of diners came to celebrate weddings, birthdays, christenings and class reunions. 

The Mirtos’ story is told in photographs that line the walls of the restaurant. Some photos, of people in formal poses staring at the camera with eyes full of hope, date back to the 1930s.   

In time, the Mirtos’ children took over daily operations. “It wasn’t quite as planned, but suddenly it was 40 years later and we’re still here,” said chef Nick Mirto, emerging briefly from the kitchen to embrace family and friends.  

By 2 p.m., it was time to party. The guests were gathered under several tents. A 40-foot long table was piled with antipasti. There was a kid’s section. More kids populated the bocce court. Jamie Gerber from Rosey’s restaurant came by with extra sun umbrellas.  

The servers – both current and former employees – kept the food coming. “There are 15-20 of us who used to work here and came out today to help,” said Heather Bay. “It’s all-hands-on-deck time.” 

“My favorite time as a teenager was working weddings,” said Jonathan Scarinzi, who is now a real estate broker in Pine Plains.. “I’ve worked nine weddings at Lia’s. It was just great to be there on someone’s special day.” 

“My mom and both uncles worked here,” added Kaylie Jackson. “I did too. It wasn’t just for a paycheck. It gives you a boost to know your boss” – in her case, Nick – “actually cares about you.” 

Max Mayer, who performed live music at the celebration, has a different memory. “I remember a guy swinging from the chandelier sometime in the ‘90s,” he said. “The whole thing came down. I got blamed for it because I was doing the music.” Nina and Giuseppe drew the line. “The grandparents said, ‘We love having you play but our place gets wrecked every time you come.’ So I wasn’t asked back. Until today.” 

Granddaughter Killmer confirmed the story. “We used to have live music in the bar until 3 a.m. in the 1980s and 1990s,” she said. “We had plenty of shenanigans. The bar was full of laughter.”  

But it’s the quiet service to the community rather than the parties that endeared Lia’s to Pine Plains. “When my husband and I came here 39 years ago I didn’t know a soul,” says Pat Puca. “I cried nights wanting to go back to Flushing. Then I went to Lia’s and the family took me in and befriended me and introduced me around the community. I was so grateful.” Puca now runs the Back Bar Beer Garden and Cabin on Route 199. 

Over time, Lia’s has established itself as part of Pine Plains’ bedrock. Every Christmas, the Mirtos help a family that’s down on their luck with presents for the kids and a holiday meal. They do it quietly, without publicity.

And for more than 20 years, the Mirtos have given out scholarships to Stissing Mountain high school students wishing to go to college. “I got a scholarship right after high school,” said Kaylynn Amelio. “It helped stabilize me.”  

In July 2010, the Mirto family faced its greatest challenge. A fire started above the kitchen in a fluorescent fitting just after closing time. The upstairs rooms were destroyed. The experience was devastating for the family, especially for 84-year old Giuseppe.  

Lia’s Mountain View was reborn 16 months later with a new bar and bigger kitchen. Sadly, Giuseppe did not live to see its reopening. “But we continued with his love of life and his spirit,” Killmer said.  

During Covid, the Mirtos were once again forced to regroup, offering takeout meals and curbside delivery and continuing to feed the community. “We kept our doors open,” said Killmer. 

Family, their own and those of others, matters most of all. This April, the restaurant closed for six weeks to repatriate Nina Mirto’s ashes back to Monreale. “Before my grandpa died in 2011, he felt Italy was where he belonged in the end, so we buried him there,” said Killmer. When Nina said her wish was to be buried next to him, “we just closed the restaurant and got her to Sicily next to her husband,” Killmer added.  

The granddaughter describes a life bound up in Lia’s. “I grew up there and never left,” she said. “My playpen was in the pizza room.  When I think of home, this is it.” 

She started to work legally at Lia’s at age 14. “Before that it was free child labor,” she joked. Every day the school bus dropped her off not at home but at Lia’s. She left town, but returned when she was in her 20s. “I realized what a special environment Lia’s is,” she said.  

Running a large restaurant was hard work. “Growing up here was tough on a kid,” said Killmer. “My mom worked 80-hour weeks. It wore her out.” The staffing shortages that plague many Pine Plains businesses compounded the workload.  

Consequently, Lia’s has been put up for sale, though it remains open for now. “Our chef, my uncle Nick, is nearly 70 years old,” said Killmer. “He’s tired. “We’ve been working 60-hour weeks for 40 years. We’ve had a good run.”  

Over the years, Lia’s has helped the community mark time. Lia’s is my husband’s and my Friday date night,” says Cindy Damon. “I can’t imagine anyone taking over. I can’t imagine not having that sauce of theirs. It’s all in the sauce, you know.”   

As the afternoon progressed, Killmer thanked the crowd: “You stood by us, through the fire, through the pandemic and through the deaths of our grandparents,” she said. “We thank you.” 

As the sun set behind Stissing Mountain, a conga line formed. Four generations joined in, shaking maracas, weaving among the tables, sweeping up diners and unfurling along the edge of the field where the corn stood 7 feet high.  

Mackenzie Killmer looked on and smiled. “Running a restaurant has been hard work,” she said. “But I would not change a thing.”