Little Italy restaurant served up on the auction block, again

Daily Record, The (Baltimore), Jun 9, 2006 by Joe Bacchus

Luigi Petti will take a second turn on the auction block.

After a previous sale of the prominent restaurant in Baltimore's Little Italy fell through, Alex Cooper Auctions Inc. will look for a new buyer at a June 28 auction.

Luigi Petti occupies approximately 9,000 square feet of commercial space at 1002 Eastern Ave. John G. Orendorff, who opened the restaurant in 1990 with his wife, Colleen, said the real estate includes a large banquet room, space for 325 patrons inside and 125 patrons outside.

He said the sale will include all of Luigi Petti's furniture, equipment and liquor license, although the sale of the liquor license must be approved by the city's Board of Liquor License Commissioners. Orendorff said a buyer would essentially be purchasing a ready-to-go restaurant.

Fully equipped - it's almost like a turnkey operation, he said.

The restaurant is already closed in preparation for the sale, doors locked and chairs stacked on tables.

This will be the second time Orendorff has sold the property this year. A buyer agreed to pay $1.225 million in February, but the deal fell through in May, Orendorff said. However, he said interest at that time was pretty high, so he believes he can make just as much on this sale.

Orendorff and Luigi Petti Inc. are selling the property for financial reasons, according to documents from Ronald B. Katz, an attorney in Owings Mills who was appointed substitute trustee for the property's sale. Katz could not be reached for comment.

[We're] not bankrupt, but we have to sell, Orendorff said.

He said he does not know what's next, but after spending most of his life in the restaurant business, he will most likely try something new.