The Hotz Legacy.....

"Where good friends meet" has been the motto of Hotz Café in Clevelands Tremont neighborhood since John Hotzs grandfather bought and opened the café in February 1919. John Hotz became the third generation of his family to run the little neighborhood bar, when he took it over in 1997.

It not only drew the local railroad and steel workers, but celebrities like Ty Cobb, Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Rocky Colavito and various prize fighters and others through the years. "Babe Ruth came in here and bought a round for everyone. He wrote out a check," John Hotz said. "My grandfather said that was one check he would never cash. We still have it."

Andrew J. Hotz Sr., John's father, took over the tavern and ran it for 50 years. He ran a "tight ship" and didn't allow any problems to even materialize inside, John said. That was well documented when some of the cast and crew of the 1978 movie "The Deer Hunter" stopped by Hotz Cafe. Various Tremont locations were used in the film. "Robert DeNiro, Meryl Streep and others from the movie stopped in here one day after filming," Hotz said. "My dad refused to serve them. He told them to take it somewhere else "My dad threw out Robert De Niro and Meryl Streep!"  

Along side the Cafe is another Hotz business called Big Guys Pizza.  Big Guys is a carryout only restaurant, but customers can order their food next door to eat at Hotz Café. A first generation Hotz, Betty "Ma" Hotz founded the Pierogi Pizza. The crust is layered with butter, onions, potato, and cheese, topped with sauerkraut, and finished with kielbasa.  The Pierogi Pizza has been a long time specialty favorite and is available upon special request.

Ready-to-bake pizzas are available for those who want the taste of freshly baked pizza in the comfort of their own kitchen.

"Our goal at Hotz Café and Big Guys Pizza is to treat everyone who enters our doors as though they were guests at our homes. Ultimately, both businesses reflect Hotz family's personalities, and that's why people feel so comfortable here," says Hotz.

"We never let an anniversary go by without a proper celebration," said Betty Hotz, Johns mother. "Many things have changed over the past 90 years, but there is one thing that hasn't -- our friendly service."