The Swiss Hotel was honored as Sonoma County’s Small Business of the Year by State Sen. Bill Dodd on Wednesday, months before the iconic Sonoma business celebrates its centennial.
“I’ve enjoyed working with the public over the years and it’s nice to know that someone thinks you’re doing such a great job,” owner Hank Marioni said in a press release. “I certainly did not expect this.”
Switzerland, as it is known to local residents, was founded by a Swiss immigrant, Mose Mastelotto, in the year Passage of “California Historic Landmark #496” from the hotel balcony.
“Swiss Hotel is known for its consistent quality and longevity when it comes to Sonoma businesses,” Senator Dodd said in a press release. “Simply the quintessential family business whose owners have given so much to the community. I am happy to know of their success and wish them continued success.
The Swiss Mastelotto family has passed down four generations to today’s owner, Hank Marioni.
He remembers his childhood lunch in the kitchen of the Swiss hotel where his grandfather worked, and the announcer Freddie Wing would give the Marionni brothers “everything on the stove.”
In the year Swiss’s menu hasn’t changed significantly since Marioni took over in 1991 — a fact he attributes to the restaurant’s longevity as other businesses on Sonoma Plaza have closed, sold, reopened and closed again.
An article about a night at the Swiss Hotel was written by Press Democrat reporter Jeff Cox in 2014, highlighting the restaurant’s timeless and timeless charm. He described it simply as “la dulce vita, Sonoma style.”
Cox “Sit back, relax, enjoy the weather, and this time of year, mostly tourists — watch the spectacular parade as you stroll down the sidewalk,” he wrote in 2014. They rush to get your order to your red and white checked tablecloth as quickly as possible.
Just like Swiss table cloth icon waitress Jean Paul, who after 25 years has just discovered that she has spent half her life working in a Swiss hotel.
In fact, as part of the city’s “Celebrate Sonoma” program, Powell was given her own day on Aug. 5 to recognize her place in the community. And over the years, Switzerland has become a second family for her, she said.
“To maintain such a strong and successful business for that many generations is huge, isn’t it?” said Powell, with a boldness like a dinner rush. “It’s family. We are not corporate.
Powell said it’s amazing that the restaurant has been in the hands of four generations and soon a fifth generation.
Marioni, who has run the business for 30 years, is retiring in October and will hand over the reins to his cousin, Christine Dunlap Shantz, who has worked in Switzerland for the past 18 years, he said.
In the year When Marioni took over the restaurant in 1991, he felt pressure to “not screw it up.” He wanted to build a place that would serve the community, cater to customers who could order maker’s mark glass at affordable prices, and be a “red and white ball” venue.
“We’ll be waiting all night and you’ll see a lot of families that I grew up with… and everyone will be wearing red and white,” Marioni said. That was a real, just good time that Saturday night in Sonoma.
Contact and follow Chase Hunter at chase.hunter@sonomanews.com @Chase_HunterB On Twitter.
