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  • On The Square restaurant employees, from left, Demetrious Noble, Susan Keel Anderson and Kasey Corbitt prepare for Thursday night’s customers. On The Square was named one of the top restaurants in the United States according to a website for the San Francisco Business Times. Photo/Calvin Adkins

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  • Inez Ribustillos, front row, third from left, stands beside her husband, Tom Ribustillos, during a brief photo session for the On The Square staff Thursday night. The Ribustillos opened the On The Square restaurant in 2002. Photo/Calvin Adkins

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December 30, 2011

On The Square tagged one of the top restaurants in Americas’

AMONG THE BEST

Correspondent Dana Stone

TARBORO — Tarboro restaurant named to the “top 100 best” list

On the Square, a Tarboro restaurant owned by Inez and Tom Ribustillo, has been designated one of the top 100 eateries in the United States.  According to the website for the San Francisco Business Times, the “top 100” were located in 34 states.  North Carolina and California tied for first place, with ten restaurants each on the list.

When asked to describe his reaction to being one of the “top 100,” Tom Ribustillo stated he was “extremely pleased.”  The ranking places On the Square in such esteemed company as Per Se and Le Bernardin in New York City, which were also on the list.

Adding to her husband's remarks, Inez Ribustillo stated that,  "This is a group effort. The staff is the most deserving of this  award. We are so thankful for this community, for the visitors to the restaurant, and for all the people who work here."

The "top 100" list is a designation was made by OpenTable, Inc, “a leading provider of free, real-time online restaurant reservations for diners, and guest management solutions for restaurants.”  

According to Caroline Potter , OpenTable's Chief Dining Officer, "the restaurants on this list are wonderfully varied, but they have one overwhelming quality in common – each establishment is taking every opportunity to deliver a superb dining experience."  The Diners’ Choice Awards were selected from 10 million reviews submitted by OpenTable diners.  More than 12,000 restaurants are included from all 50 states and the District of Columbia.

Inez and Tom honed their expertise in restaurant management in Manhatten.   “Inie,” a Tarboro native, decided to come home to Tarboro after marrying Tom, and they eventually bought On the Square, a popular café formerly owned for six years by Frances Liverman.  (Frances is now the manager of On the Square, and is the friendly person taking orders on the days when the café is open for lunch.)   On the Square was opened by the Ribustillos in 2002.

While Tarborians have considered On the Square the best restaurant in Tarboro for years, its reputation has now spread far and wide.  One recent visitor called it an “oasis in the wasteland of fast food:”   “On the Square is an oasis providing a simple yet diverse menu of lunch staples done with a twist. Always fresh ingredients prepared well. One the few places in the area where you can have main course salads and other healthy options. Superb wine and beer selection."

Known for its frequent use of local produce and fruit in season, On the Square also has an excellent wine list, thanks to the efforts of the Ribustillos, both of whom are sommeliers, or wine experts.  According to their website, On the Square strives to “provide a memorable dining experience for both tourists and locals alike.”   The ambiance and music in this restaurant combine to create a delightful atmosphere.

Nine other restaurants in North Carolina were named in the “top 100” list.  They are:  Artisanal, Banner Elk; Chef and the Farmer, Kinston; The Copper Door, Hayesville; The Dining Room, Biltmore Estate, Asheville; the Gamekeeper, Boone; Heron’s, Cary; Saint Jacques French Cuisine of Raleigh; Little Dipper, Wilmington; and the Fearrington House Restaurant, Pittsboro.

While On the Square is full for New Year’s Eve, groups of four or more may still be able to make a reservation, but call soon.   Diners will be treated to four courses.  For more information, please visit the restaurant’s website at:  onthesquare.com, or call 252-823-8268.

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Nathan Sherrod (left) and his twin brother Melvin, of Tarboro, enjoy a carnival ride Saturday afternoon at the Happening on the Common. Abrams Rentals provided the rides.

  • HAPPENING ON THE COMMON

    Tarboro’s Town Common was clearly the center of activity in town Saturday,  with cars lining the streets surrounding the common, music that could be heard from blocks away, and a sea of people navigating their way through the vendors’ tables under a canopy of trees. The occasion was the 43rd Annual Happening on the Common.

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Local News
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  • Two suspects arrested on 36 charges; third issued citation

    After executing a search warrant Thursday on a residence at 500 W. Johnston St. in Tarboro, police officers arrested two suspects for possessing a small amount of marijuana and issued a third suspect a citation for possessing a glass pipe to smoke the drugs.
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Tony Everett, of Wake Forest, backs his Chevrolet truck named DoeRunner up as he prepares to pull in the four wheel drive event Friday night.

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    PINETOPS – With the threat of rain during the weekend, it put a little damper on the Pinetops 300 Tractor and Truck Pull attendance. Friday night there was a large crowd in attendance, but not the amount it has been the last several years. There was 500 less people in attendance Friday then there was a year ago, but it didn't stop the pullers from slinging mud everywhere. The fans in one section even had a chance to see what it looked like when a belt breaks on a fine tuned machine. During the Mini Modified run, Thomas Coleman, of Stoneville, had a belt break on his KB 526 Pure Hell ride and the belt slung into the crowd. No one was injured.

    May 20, 2013 2 Photos

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Opinion
  • My 13 years have been lucky

    It was 13 years Sunday that a drought was broken in Big Spring, Texas, After that, we ate Mexican for dinner with a gathering of family and friends.
    The next day, a Saturday, Stephanie and I joined one another in marriage under a beautiful little gazebo by Comanche Trail Lake, fed by the historic spring from which the community draws its name.

    May 20, 2013

Lifestyles
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    Brittney Joyce Corbett and Kenneth Robert Chasse, Jr. were united in marriage on April 6th, 2013, at 5:30pm at the Imperial Centre in Rocky Mount. The Rev. Carrol Bradbury officiated the ceremony.
    The Rehearsal Dinner was hosted by Shirley and Donald Foreman, Grandparents of the Groom and also Elisha and Kenneth Chasse, Parents of the Groom, at Pizza Inn in Rocky Mount.
    The Bride is the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. William Durwood Corbett of Macclesfield, NC. The Groom is the son of Mr. and Mrs. Kenneth Robert Leonel Chasse, Sr. of Pinetops, NC.

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Obituaries Archives
  • MATTIE RUTH BULLOCK

    BELVOIR — Mrs. Mattie Ruth Bullock, 81, passed away on Saturday, May 18, 2013. The funeral service will be conducted Tuesday at 1:30 p.m. in the Wilkerson Funeral Chapel.  Burial will be in Evergreen Memorial Park, Wilson.
    Mrs. Bullock, a native of Wilson County and a lifelong resident of Pitt County, was a graduate of Belvoir-Falkland High School.  She was engaged in farming with her husband until 1989 and was a charter member of Belvoir Free Will Baptist Church.

    May 19, 2013

  • CLAYTON JERELL EPPS
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Food
Events
  • Edgecombe Events May 20

    Edgecombe Events should be submitted by noon the day before publication. Items eligible include notices of local meetings and activities of non-profit organizations, clubs, schools and civic groups in the community. Information should be brief and typewritten, neatly printed or via e-mail. Questions? 823-3106 or e-mail: events@dailysoutherner.com. Leave  a daytime contact phone number.

    May 19, 2013

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