A Holiday Toast To (And From) Jr’s

John Brandt has been in Westport long enough to see a lot of changes. But some things never do. That’s why the Staples Class of 1961 grad was glad to send this report along:

From time to time, a vestige of the old Westport bubbles to the surface. Tonight was one of those times.

Jr’s Deli and Grill on Riverside Avenue has been a Westport fixture since the 1970s. That’s when Junior Bieling and his wife, Bedford Junior High School teacher, the former Carol Digisi, opened a great little breakfast and lunch spot.

Their nephew, Jeff Arciola, took over the business when they retired. He’s now handed it off to the current “chef,” Eric Johnson, and his “sous chef,” Joe. The ambiance hasn’t changed, nor has the clientele. It remains one of the warmest places in town.

Last night Eric invited his regulars, their families and friends, and anyone who loves great food and company to a holiday open house to celebrate the season and the continuation of a Westport tradition. We gathered to renew our commitment to one another and to the town we love.

The air was festive, the food and drink were terrific, but the company — commuters and contractors, lawyers and landscapers, retirees and working stiffs of every stripe — was a cross-section of what Westport was, is and will be. It’s friends and neighbors supporting one of the great places on Earth: our town.