# Chelo's Hometown Bar & Grille

Chelo's Hometown Bar & Grille is a chain of casual American-style restaurants located in the state of Rhode Island. It is Rhode Island's largest local family-owned restaurant company and operates eight locations across the state. The chain offers a variety of menu items and operates a central commissary in Warwick to supplement operations. Since the company's founding in 1955, the Chelo family has privately owned the chain.

## History

In the early 1950s, mill worker Hysen Chelo purchased a piece of property on Mendon Road in Cumberland, Rhode Island, as an investment. His four children—James, Amet, Glenn, and Craig Chelo—envisioned establishing a restaurant on the site. At the time, the town of Cumberland was experiencing a rapid period of economic transition from industrial manufacturing-oriented production towards post-war suburbanization, in turn increasing demand for affordable dining establishments in the region. In 1955, the brothers established Chelo's Steak House, serving standard American-style fare and specialized in steak sandwiches. The restaurant proved popular within its first years of operation, and a second location on Newport Avenue in Rumford, East Providence opened in 1962.
Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, Chelo's expanded its operations across Rhode Island, establishing additional locations in suburban areas of Providence, Cranston, and Wakefield. The chain was renamed to Chelo's Hometown Bar & Grille during this time. The company constructed a central commissary in Warwick during this period to ensure consistency. The commissary supplies soups, sauces, baked goods, and desserts to all locations, a practice that continues today. By 2005, Chelo's Hometown Bar & Grille had become the largest family-owned restaurant chain in Rhode Island by number of locations and collectively employed over 1,000 individuals.
In 2004, a legal dispute arose within the Chelo family. Jay Chelo, a family member who had previously been involved in the business, opened an Italian-themed restaurant called Mozzarella's in North Providence. This led to a lawsuit (Chelo's of Woonsocket, Inc. v. Chelo) from other Chelo family members and their restaurant entities, citing a violation of a non-compete agreement established in 2001. The court ultimately denied the preliminary injunction against Jay Chelo, ruling that the plaintiffs failed to demonstrate irreparable harm, which was necessary to enforce the non-compete clause. In 2021, allegations surfaced that funds from Amet Chelo's trust were used by other family members, leaving him financially destitute. This situation brought attention to disputes over financial management within the family.

## Locations and menu offerings

As of 2025, the chain operates eight locations in Rhode Island including Cranston, East Providence, Rumford, Providence, Smithfield, Warwick, Greewich Bay, and Woonsocket. The Chelo's company logo features caricatures of the original four Chelo brothers, which is widely used in marketing. All of Chelo's locations (excluding Chelo's Waterfront location) share the same menu, featuring a mix of American dishes such as burgers, sandwiches, salads, pasta, and seafood. Chelo's Waterfront, located near Greenwich Bay, serves as an upscale dining concept with a unique seafood-centric menu compared to the other locations. Every location features an extensive bar area; most locations feature banquet facilities for private events and catering services. The commissary in Warwick supplies all locations with pre-prepared soups, sauces, baked breads, and desserts to maintain consistency in food quality.

### Closed locations

The company previously operated four additional locations that have since closed: the Warwick Mall location, the Airport Road location (also located in Warwick), the Wakefield location, and the original Cumberland location. The Warwick Mall location, which was attached to the mall, was permanently closed due to extensive flooding that caused damage to the mall in March, 2010. The Airport Road location was branded as Chelo's "Good to Go" and was a short lived fast-casual dining concept which featured a drive-through; "Good to Go" was operational from 2004 to 2007. The Wakefield location suffered from underperformance and ceased to operate under the Chelo's name in 2009; in 2010, the Chelo's company converted the location into a Rhode-Island themed sports bar concept called Rhody Joe's that closed in 2017. The original Chelo's location in Cumberland closed during the 1970s; however, the company maintains their corporate offices in the town.