Ricciuti’s
FAQ | Biographies | Social Responsibility | Olney | Community Links
About Us
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Hours:
Monday – Thursday 11:30am – 9pm
Friday – Saturday 11:30am – 10pm
Sunday 5pm – 9pm
Payment: Visa, MC, American Express, Discover
Average Price: Lunch $10.00 & Dinner $22.00
Catering: Yes, call for personal assistance with your catering needs.
Delivery: No
Take Out: Yes, all menu items
Reservations: Recommended - learn more
Patio: Yes
Dress Code: Casual
Wheelchair accessible: Yes, please call ahead so we can make acceptable accommodations.
Smoking: Outside patio only
Beer/Wine/Alcohol: Yes, on premises only
Our Mission
Ricciuti’s is Olney’s premiere eco-friendly restaurant and a dining destination that rivals any downtown establishment for interesting, up-scale, beautifully presented and seasonal dishes. Here the seasons and the farmers dictate the menu and it features locally grown seasonal produce, sustainable seafood, free-range chicken and beef, organic coffee as well as natural and organic wines. We are committed to creating a dining experience that is consistently impressive and positive using responsible business practices while adhering to slow food* principles.
We love food. It is just that simple. Through our creative cooking and educational venues we aim to broaden both our customer’s palette and appreciation for good food and wine while sharing our passion for the flavors of the seasons. It is our pleasure to pass along information, techniques and knowledge about food related topics through various restaurant events and programs such as our half price wine appreciation night, wine dinners, wine tastings and Ricciuti’s Unplugged — cooking with James, where you never know what to expect, anything goes and fun is always on the menu! We also are deeply rooted in the community and are active in several community events and programs, which have become very meaningful parts of our lives.
It is our hope to inspire our customers to learn more about the slow food movement and about the importance of going green. Mostly, we would like to leave you with the desire to enjoy spending more time with your family and friends around the table!
*Please see www.slowfoodusa.org for more information.
Biographies
Amy and James Ricciuti live in Brookville, Maryland, with their two daughters and two dogs. As self-taught restaurateurs, each has contributed to their shared vision for a successful restaurant. Both are excited about their new focus—finding new ways to incorporate green living and sustainability while continuing to deliver a first-rate dining experience to all who visit.
Amy describes herself as the “hot-headed, do-it-better” half. While studying Agricultural Economics at the University of Maryland, she learned restaurant fundamentals as a waitress and bartender. But she always kept a running list of the tweaks she would make at a place of her own. Like emphasizing quality across the board, creating a comfortable and welcoming atmosphere, and caring more about pride in product than the bottom line. Today, the restaurant she has created with James exceeds her early expectations. She credits creative thinking, focus, and the fine staff with helping grow Ricciuti’s from its original counter-service concept in Laytonsville to its casual sophistication in Olney, now in its 10th year.
James, the “level-headed, heavy-lifter” partner, is the man behind the menu. With a passion for product quality and inventiveness, he creates each menu item and ensures they are made with the finest ingredients. The youngest of seven children raised in Greenbelt, Maryland, James’ earliest memories are of his large Italian family sharing food. When other boys asked for sports equipment, James’ wish list included an electric griddle! Later, he held just about every restaurant position available—dishwasher, busboy, waiter and bartender. After earning his degree in Criminal Justice from the University of Maryland, James was inspired to create a special dining experience, incorporating all that he and Amy had learned. Along with running day-to-day operations at Ricciuti’s, James is a spinning instructor and avid Pilates student.
Amy and James would like to acknowledge their hard-working, dedicated staff, with special thanks to restaurant managers, Hal Lackey and Peter Virkus, and kitchen manager Jose Escobar. As all restaurant folks know, these individuals deserve a lion’s share of the credit for the success of each and every day.
Social Responsibility
We are an eco-friendly restaurant with an approach and philosophy of doing business responsibly. We support green guidelines to the extent of which our restaurant can:
- We are powered by wind and use certified environmentally friendly chemicals.
- Our carry out containers are made of an easily biodegradable sugar and corn compound—not Styrofoam and all of our paper products are recycled.
- We source our seafood from sustainable waters and support local farmers.
Ricciutis is 100% wind powered by Clean Currents, and you can be too! Find out how!
Olney
Olney is a Maryland suburb of Washington, DC, located about 20 miles due north of the U.S. Capitol. Olney is an unincorporated town in Montgomery County, Maryland. That means that while we have a strong sense of community, we do not have a local government, mayor, council, planning board, police department, etc. Rather, we receive those services from the county government. Olney is proud of its excellent schools, well-maintained neighborhoods, and strong community spirit.
And the Olney House—where we’re proud to call home—has its own history. You can learn more about it at the Sandy Spring Museum.
People and Places We Love
These are organizations and events that we believe in and support. If you have the opportunity to get involved do it! Any of these organizations could benefit from good folks helping out!
“Olney House” has been a familiar landmark in the village of Olney for 200 years. The house and the springhouse are the only remaining historic sites at the intersection of the Brookeville-Washington Pike and the Sandy Spring-Mechanicsville Road.
Many of the oldest Olney family names have been associated with the house. Whitson Canby is believed to have built the house in 1800 as a small log structure. A few years later Roger Brooke V. of Brooke Grove bought it. He was hoping that his daughter Sarah Brooke, who had marred Charles Farquhar Sr. in 1833 and was living in Alexandria, would return to Mechanicsville. They moved to the house in 1837.
The Farquhar family, originally from Scotland, came to Pennsylvania in 1721. Amos Farquhar, born in 1768, was the great grandson of the earlier immigrant Allen Amos who married Mary Elgar in 1795. In 1825 they moved to Montgomery County so that Amos could teach at Fair Hill School which was located just across the road from the “Olney House” There son Charles Farquhar, Sr. had taught at Fair Hill during 1821-1823 and then at Benjamin Hallowell’s School in Alexandria. In 1826 Charles attended the Medical School of the University of Pennsylvania receiving a degree in 1832. He opened his practice in Alexandria and was assigned by the city council to deal with the cholera epidemic of the time.
After Charles and Sarah married, moved and remodeled the house, Roger Brooke V. conveyed the house and two tracts of land totaling 250 acres to them. They named the property “Olney” after the village of the same name in Buckinghamshire, England, home of their favorite poet, William Cowper. The chimney on the extreme left was built in 1841. One of the corner stones bears the initials “C.F.” and the date. A large fireplace with bake oven and crane was added to the kitchen. Above this was the spinning room. A parlor and second floor bedroom, each with a fireplace, a front hall and stairway were also included. Later an “in-law” suite was added to the rear and occupied by Mary (Elgar) Farquhar, Dr. Farquhar’s mother until her death in 1853.
In 1844 Dr. Farquhar died of pneumonia, which he contracted on a trip to Baltimore. He left behind a young widow, five children and one on the way. With her fathers help Sarah managed the farm and raised her children. During the Civil War soldiers from both sides passed through the village requisitioning horses and supplies. Mrs. Farquhar was reported to be a gracious hostess when called upon.
In 1866 Sarah Farquhar divided her Property among her children. Eight acres were retained with the “Olney House” which was appraised at $2,000. Sarah continued living at the house until her death in 1888. The house was sold to Henry Clay Sherman who occupied it with his wife Sue. Unfortunately Sherman died suddenly in a violent storm in September 1896.
Charles Farquhar Jr. became a doctor late in life and he purchased the house in 1898. He was the county coroner and president of the Montgomery County Medical society. He died in 1916 at the age of 75. His wife sold the house to Estelle M. Gilmore who made extensive renovations adding two bathrooms and a central heating system.
In 1936 Gordon A. Grant purchased the house and 3.26 acres. Ten years later, he sold “Olney House” to Mrs. Clara May Downy, the owner and operator of the Olney Inn. Mrs. Downy made the place her summer home and further beautified, decorated and furnished the house with period pieces.
In 1963 Helen Denet purchased the “Olney House”. Over time the property was rented as a residence and later to various small businesses. After Helen Denet’s death, Bette and Joe Buffington of Laytonsville purchased the property, which included the house and two acres. In 2002 Amy and James Ricciutis purchased the Olney House where they operate Ricciuti’s restaurant.
Local Harvest - Find locally grown produce, anywhere in the country! Just enter your zip code or use the interactive maps to locate farmers markets, family farms, food co-ops, CSAs, farm stands, and pick-your-own produce in your neighborhood.
Joe’s Ride - raises funds to support the Joseph Patrick Sanford Memorial Foundation and Olney Days, and provides an opportunity to recognize and remember families in Olney and the surrounding communities who have endured the sorrow of losing a child.
Carol Jean Cancer Foundation - To improve the quality of life, for children with cancer and their families throughout Maryland, Washington, D.C., and Northern Virginia, by providing year round recreational and support programs free of charge.
Olney Farmers Market - a quality farmers market to serve Olney.
Slow Food USA - envisions a future food system that is based on the principles of high quality and taste, environmental sustainability, and social justice—in essence, a food system that is good, clean and fair.
Olney Maryland Chamber of Commerce - a community website for Olney and the surrounding towns.
South Mountain Creamery is Maryland’s only on the farm processing plant. We grow the crops, milk the cows, process the milk, and then deliver it all directly to you.
The juicy, tender, melt in your mouth taste of Roseda Beef is the result of a program that starts with Roseda genetics and ends with a dry aging process unique in the beef industry. Yes, it costs us more to produce beef this way, but we know you will taste the difference.