By Rachel Parker Dickerson thecabin.net Copyright 2012 The Cabin. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Good day, everyone. Recently I stopped by the building formerly known as Village Inn, which is being completely transformed like a fat ugly caterpillar into a beautiful butterfly. Am I right?

Folks seem to be having trouble remembering the name of the new place, likely because it is a bit lengthy. So here it is. Russo’s Coal-Fired Italian Kitchen. And because I like memory tricks, here’s a breakdown with things to help.

Russo’s. Think about Rene Russo, “Outbreak,” 1995, with Dustin Hoffman and Morgan Freeman. I had to go to Internet Movie Database for that one.

Coal-Fired. Recall “A Christmas Carol” in which Mr. Scrooge would not allow Bob Cratchit to add more coal to the fire. I don’t know why my memory tricks all come from movies and literature.

Italian Kitchen. Self explanatory, I think. 

So, imagine Rene Russo’s character from “Outbreak” is on her way to examine the latest viral strain and she stops at an Italian restaurant. She can overhear in the Kitchen that the chef keeps shouting to his assistant, “add more Coal to the Fire!”

That’s positively ridiculous. Try to forget the name now.

Anyway, I went by there recently, and the construction is getting close to being finished. It looks pretty great, with the brick and the gas lanterns. Inside, the ceiling has been covered with stained wood. Very tasteful. Hopefully soon I will be able to find out something about when this place might open.

More pizza on Dave Ward Drive

Speaking of Italian food, it’s just that kind of day.  Marco’s Pizza will open at 2501 Dave Ward Drive, Suite A2, around the first or second week of April. This is in the shopping center at Dave Ward Drive and Nutters Chapel Road.

Tracy and Joshua Fulcher are owners of the restaurant, which is part of a fast-growing franchise. Tracy Fulcher said they will start hiring in the next two weeks or so. 

Marco’s Pizza was founded by an Italian immigrant. The company prides itself on offering authentic pizza. I have been told repeatedly that it is really something special. The chain recently opened a store in Sherwood, so I guess if people really wanted to know what it was like, we could make the trip and find out. 

Fulcher said they use all fresh, never frozen ingredients, including Wisconsin cheese. They make the dough fresh daily in the store, she said. The restaurant will offer delivery, dine-in and carry-out.

You can look at their menu at www.marcos.com.

Putting out fires

Word came to me last week that an untrue rumor was making the rounds. So, now to throw a wet blanket on it.

Holly’s Country Kitchen is in business and has no plans to close. I hope that puts some minds at ease.

(Rachel Parker Dickerson is a freelance columnist/journalist. Send your questions and comments to rachelpdickerson@gmail.com)