BELLEFONTE — The owner of Bonfatto’s in Bellefonte is looking to bring his sauce business under one roof along West High Street near downtown.
David Letterman said in a May 26 interview there are a lot of costs to consolidate the 8-year-old sauce business in the former Kaufman Garage and Potter Hardware space, an old brick building overlooking Talleyrand Park. There, Letterman said he and Chris Hane, a partner in the business, are hoping to relocate their home offices and the production area for their expanding line of sauces.
But because of the costs of bringing the building up to code, Letterman started a Kickstarter campaign in hopes the community will invest. Those interested in donating can find the campaign at kickstarter.com/projects/629279026/bonfattos-artisan-sauces-and-products-growing-pain.
So far, 14 donors have kicked in $1,835 of the $5,000 goal.
Bonfatto’s Restaurant got its start three generations before Letterman in downtown Bellefonte along High Street in 1919. It’s now along Route 550 near Interstate 99 on the outskirts of town. He said he hopes to bring back the “bonanza subs” back into downtown at the new location.
“After about a hundred years we’re back to where we all started,” he said. “It’s kind of a nostalgic thing, too.”
Though Bonfatto’s Artisan Sauces has been picking up awards at competitions, Letterman said they found their start through a need for a larger variety of wing sauces, and they just began adding ingredients until they found the right combinations. He said he’s also taken suggestions for sauces from friends or customers.
A part of keeping it fresh also means playing off of trends in the culinary marketplace. He said a lot of brewers have been adding spicy peppers to beer, so he turned that idea on its head and created a verde sauce with hops in it, spawning the sauce Hoppy Verde to You. The latest to come from the Bonfatto’s kitchens is a bloody mary mix.
He said they haven’t decided on how much retail they will do at the new location when it’s completed. Perhaps there will be some Italian goods or Bellefonte memorabilia to accompany the sauces.
Already the sauces can be found a number of local and regional store shelves, some as far away as Ohio.
As long as everything goes according to plan, Letterman said, the new location could open in as early as six months.
