Pondi's Restaurant in Lisbon has been in business for over a century.

From surviving the prohibition by making "bathtub" gin, to altering their carryout process during the COVID-19 pandemic, their success story isn't stopping any time soon.

"It's never been closed," said Matt Borza, Owner of Pondi's. "It survived basically two pandemics- the 1917 and COVID-19. We have never been closed due to lack of business. We survived prohibition. It is truly a century restaurant in the state of Ohio."

"This is the American success story," said Congressman Bill Johnson (R-OH) 6th District. "Putting up their own money, taking a risk, building a culture, building a team and making it a success. A lot of restaurants struggled to make it through COVID-19. Many restaurants closed down. Some of them had struggled to open back up."

A 2-story addition, 2600 square foot kitchen expansion and a new market concept are just some of the new plans for the Lisbon classic.

"I don't think there are many places that can say all but 98% of our staff came back," said Jessica Borza, Owner of Pondi's. "We're fully staffed now. We've got 44 employees."

The Borza's say the demand for the restaurant has even grown over the last year. They're working on new features like food prep boxes, catering off premises, and say their pop up market plans are being worked out.

"We sell certified angus beef. It's aged 28 days, minimum," said Treg Steves, Chief Operating Officer. "We cut them fresh every day. Our ground beef, we make fresh every day. We make sausages, we trim chickens. We do everything by hand, every day."

The Borza's say they plan to complete the renovations no later than the end of 2021.