Remembering With Jerry Humphrey's Help The Life Of Bobby Abbo Of Our Once Very Popular Italian Restaurant Roma Here In Cleveland Park That Is Now The Firehook Bakery

Posted on our Cleveland Park Wines & Spirits' Facebook page yesterday, Wednesday, April 23rd, 2014 , enjoy ...   Anthony ( TONY ) Quinn  4/24/2014

ONE OF THE Cleveland Park neighborhood ' icon ' figures here Santos Rivera told me last night passed away : Bobby the owner of the Firehook Bakery location here as well as a couple of others, Bobby passed away losing his fight with cancer. This is sad news indeed as he has been a welcome fixture here with his parents before him. They owned, ran and managed with love, care and passion the Italian restaurant, Roma. Many of you may not know about this restaurant that used to greet it's customers with the two parents and some large stuffed animals of a leaping tiger and a bear was it? I cannot remember now. It was a respite, a lively and active oasis for customers to go and enjoy a tasty, comfort-Italian-casual-food meal without pretense and attitude.

Many of you have seen the mural that's painted on the wall in the garden out in the back of the Firehood Bakery with the fountain and the old-vines grape arbor, too.

My last glorious memory of Bobby was him last year up over the vine arbor perched rather precariously clipping them! LOVE that, GO BOBBY, thanks for all the great memories. The vines are just starting to grow this year now ... cheers, you will be missed Bobby. Anthony ( TONY ) Quinn Wednesday morning on a bright, cool, breezy late morning here. TONY

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Jerry Humphreys likes this.
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Jerry Humphreys I called on Bobby & his mother many years ago for a long time up until his moms death and later when he sold. We became close friends over business & later personal. He was a very giving man!!.
1 hr · Like

Anthony Quinn Jerry, thanks for sharing all of this as I only knew him through Cleveland Park Wines & Spirits and I did enjoy seeing him from time to time in the store and outside and around Cleveland Park. I started my story sitting in the Firehook Bakery grape ourbor like this : " Sitting here bathed in sunshine's gentle late afternoon spotlight tempered in constant variations of a theme of hot on my left side of my face and cooler on my right side that is shaded and more susceptible to the varying breeze now, lulling me to almost fall asleep as I yawn largely and enjoy the big old grape vine to my right side that's reined here now for many long and fruitful years under the constant supervision of occasionally chirping, constantly busy and vigilant sparrows just by my feet enjoying the many bread or cookie crumbs that the last occupant of this plastic brown table must have left in Bobby's grape-arbored garden/courtyard outside in the back of the ' now ' Firehook Bakery that used to be the Roma Restaurant. ... " TONY

• Anthony Quinn Jerry, tell us what wines Bobby liked to drink? Also tell us a short story about a time you sold to him and his mother at Roma Restaurant? What wines did they buy from you then? It would be nice to share this with everyone that knew him. Cheers, TONY

  8 hrs · Like
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  Jerry Humphreys Bobby really was not a big drinker. He liked a glass of Italian red from time to time. He did like a good Kentucky Bourbon from time to time too. They bought mostly Italian wines (Ruffino, Rocca, even Fazzi Battaglia (fish bottle wine)etc) from me. It took a while to earn his trust. But I kept going back at him & wore him down....ha! I would frequent Poor Roberts as a customer as well & would see Bobby on his rounds & one day he dropped this dilapidated wine list on my table & said "here put something together & "show" me what you can do". That was the happiest day of my young career, I recall fondly. I had been after the list for over a year. He became one of my best & loyal customers after that.

  42 mins · Like
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  Anthony Quinn Thanks Jerry, I will share this as it's a great read. Tell us about Poor Roberts as I never heard of it? What was it exactly, where was it, and when did it close? Thanks, TONY

Jerry Humphreys Poor Roberts was a bar between The Roma & The Raw Bar. It was the local "Cheers" of the Cleveland Park neighborhood. It was quite a mix of people every night. From judges to patent atty to telephone repairman, to salespeople. it was dark and was a head of it's time as Bobby had a Satellite installed for sports on the few TV's he had. Keep in mind this was in the 80's & early 90's. I think it all closed in 1997??
3 hours ago · Like

Anthony Quinn Thanks Jerry! TONY 

  I appreciate all of this info as it tells a story about Cleveland Park and another piece of our history here!   TONY

Go To The Racing Biz online site for the rest of this story that Jerry shared with me to read more about Bobby Abbo's life ...

Cleveland Park Wine & Spirits

9 hours ago

Copied just now from another source that was passed onto me by Jerry Humphreys. Thanks Jerry : ...

by Frank Vespe
Bobby Abbo, owner of Immortal Eyes, became very emotional following his horse's De Francis Dash win. Photo by Vas.
Bobby Abbo, owner of Immortal Eyes, became very emotional following his horse’s De Francis Dash win. Photo by Vas.
Robert “Bobby” Abbo presented a face to the world — di...See More    cheers and thanks Jerry,  TONY

Cleveland Park Wine & Spirits

9 hours ago

Let's all drink some Italian wine or Italian spirits and celebrate the life of Bobby Abbo that just passed away that was a real fixture for Cleveland Park for so many years. Cheers Bobby, TONY 4/23/2014

I will finish this as I am able. In the meantime enjoy this as it is. Cheers, thanks Jerry,   TONY