RALPH'S HAS BEEN A CELEBRITY DESTINATION FOR 100 YEARS

Legend has it that President Theodore Roosevelt was a Ralph's Restaurant customer back at the turn of the century and that's not so hard to believe. Roosevelt was a man of the people and it is easy to visualize old "Rough and Ready" sitting down to a hearty meal in the Italian Market at Ralph's. It's probably not even a stretch to consider that after he had finished his meal he probably said, "Bully for Ralph's".

When the Republican National Convention is held in Philadelphia in the summer of 2000 it will be exactly one hundred years since Teddy Roosevelt took to the rostrum at the 1900 Republican National Convention in Philadelphia and nominated William McKinley as the GOP standard bearer. It will also be exactly one hundred years since Francesco Dispigno opened his landmark Italian restaurant in the City of Philadelphia.

President Roosevelt may have been the first celebrity to grace the restaurant, but he certainly wasn't the last. In the Frank Sinatra biography The Way You Wear Your Hat, author Bill Zahme identifies Ralph's as one of the singer's favorite Philadelphia eating places and the Dispigno family has fond recollections of the many times that Sinatra frequented the restaurant over the years.

Movie Star James Darren, who grew up a few blocks from Ralph's in South Philadelphia, says, "whenever I come home to Philadelphia I take a cab right from the airport to Ralph's. I eat and then I proceed to my hotel."

Darren grew up at 10^th & Ritner Sts. and started eating at Ralph's as a child. "My family always came here for dinner," he said. Soon Darren and the Dispigno brothers - Ralph Jr. and Michael - became fast boyhood friends.

"Ralph's is truly a world class gourmet' restaurant in a neighborhood setting," Darren added, "their food is incredibly consistent, I have never had a bad meal and the food is never less than excellent."

While appearing on the TV show Melrose Place Darren told fellow star Heather Locklear about Ralph's and soon afterwards her career took her to Philadelphia and she ate dinner there - "she loved it," he reported with a smile. Popular singer Sheena Easton was also a recent guest.

While growing up with Ralph's children, Darren has nothing but accolades for Jimmy Rubino Jr., Ralph's grandson and the fourth generation owner/operator of the restaurant.

"Jimmy has taken Ralph's to the next level. He is a very sharp young man, a great restaurateur.

He runs a tight ship and he's a perfectionist. I like that. Successful people are always perfectionists," Darren added.

Rubino's mother, Elaine, Ralph's youngest child recalls the parade of celebrities that made Ralph's a favorite haunt over the years. She recites names like Tony Bennett, John Casavettes, Peter Falk, Peter Frampton, Billy Ocean, Jerry Vale, Ann Jillian, Fred Dryer, Sergio Franci, Al Martino, Sammy Davis Jr., Pat Cooper, Michael Keaton, and laughs when she recalls the time that actress Lena Horne came to the restaurant and created absolute chaos. "There was such a crowd surrounding her when she got here that my father got caught in the middle of it. He wore glasses and his glasses got knocked off and he almost got trampled trying to retrieve them."

"People come from all over to eat at Ralph's," Darren said, "basically it was peasant food that has now been elevated to a gourmet' class. It's like eating in your home, there is a true family feel there, you are never rushed, they tell you to 'take your time' eating, it's something that never changes. If I'm in Philadelphia for six nights, I'll go to Ralph's for dinner at least four of them."

Darren, who frequently appears as a singer at the Atlantic City resorts, usually prevails upon one of his relatives to bring him a dinner from Ralph's before he goes on. "I like the food and it makes me feel 'at home', so that's why I do it," he said.

Jimmy Rubino recalls the day that Dom DeLuise showed up unannounced.

"I was in the kitchen and one of the waiters came back and said, 'I think Dom DeLuise is out front.' I told him he was probably mistaken, but I walked out to see for sure and then I did a really strange thing. I saw him, realized who he was, pointed at him and blurted out, 'it's you'. He smiled up at me, pointed back, and said 'it's you too' and that broke the ice."

DeLuise, a gourmet' cook in his own right, had heard about Ralph's Calamari and wanted to find out if it was as good as it was reputed to be. He sat, alone, in the restaurant ate the Calamari, escarole and a loaf of Italian bread and then got up and left. "He had walked down here from center city," Rubino said, "and when he was done he raved about the meal, thanked us and then walked through the Italian Market and disappeared."

Ralph Dispigno Jr. recalled that DeLuise was appearing in a play at the Walnut Street Theater and that it was mid-afternoon and he "just showed up and we didn't get much work done while he was here".

Ralph Jr. also recalls other native South Philadelphians, like Frankie Avalon, Bobby Rydell, Jack Klugman, Hy Lit and Jerry Blavat who all have been regular customers. Jimmy Durante, who frequently appeared up the street at Palumbo's, would also stop by for an Italian meal after he'd get done performing.

Cardinal Bevilauqua, the leader of Philadelphia's Roman Catholic Church has been a Ralph's customer and Connie Mack, who was manager of the American League's Philadelphia Athletics baseball team for fifty years, was also a regular Ralph's customer.

In fact sports celebrities gravitate to the place. Such superstars as Yogi Berra, Jersey Joe Walcott, Rocky Marciano, Joey Giardello, Gene Tenace, Tom LaSorda, The Niekro Brothers (Phil and Joe), Jerome Brown, and Charles Barkley have all enjoyed meals at Ralph's. Ralph Jr. recalls the day that NFL stars Bob Waterfield and Elroy "Crazy Legs" Hirsch came to the restaurant. "They looked like fighters, big and rough, they were playing for the Los Angeles Rams at the time and what I remember about Waterfield was that he was then married to movie star Jane Russell."

Current Philadelphia Flyers stars Eric Lindross and John LeClair are regular customers as is former Phillies manager (and now Atlanta Braves coach) Pat Corrales. "We always draw a lot of current players," Rubino said, "Phillies players come in regularly as do hockey and football players."

Darren, who was recently at Ralph's for lunch, summed it up when he said, "thank God Ralph's is still going strong. I can't count the years I've been going there and what the place and the family means to me."