Since Sandy's Steaks and Subs closed in 2013, Tony Caruso had been thinking that something was lacking in the Elon Community. This is what inspired Tony's Pub-N-Subs.
"We knew the old bar Sandy's had been closed for a little over a year," said Caruso, "and we knew [the] Elon crowd used to love coming here."
Tony's Pub-N-Subs is the new bar and restaurant on Haggard Avenue. It opened on Friday in the same location that Sandy's once was.
One side of the venue is a bar with several different beers, while the other side is more of a diner style restaurant serving a variety of subs.
Caruso, a lifelong Burlington resident, hopes that Tony's Pub-N-Subs can bring a more relaxed option to Elon's bar scene, which he said has been missing since Sandy's closing.
"I wanna bring it back," he said. "Not bring up the same thing that the old Sandy's was, but the location, spot [and] atmosphere."
It's also important to Caruso that everyone feels welcome there, including the greater Burlington community.
"I definitely want to cater to the college kids," he said, "but I want the locals to feel welcome [as well]."
He even wants local families to enjoy the place.
"I had somebody ask me 'Can I bring my 10-year-old to shoot a game of pool?'" Caruso said. "Yes you can, and I want that."
The grand opening for Tony's will be on Saturday from 11 a.m. to 2 a.m., which is when the restaurant opens and when the bar closes.
During the opening, he hopes to hear from the community about what they want from the space.
"Since we're new to the area, we want to know what they want," he said. "If we're doing something wrong, let us know. If we're missing something, let us know"