The short answer: "We outgrew the Reed Opera House long ago."

Venti's Cafe has been in business downtown since 1996. Once Dino Venti took over full ownership in 2001, he knew that he wanted to grow the business and that would require moving to another location. What he didn't expect was finding the perfect location, almost directly across the street from his current one. 

But he's not surprised that he remained in downtown Salem.

"There was never any question we would move anywhere else," he said, "The majority of my customers live, work or spend their time downtown, plus it is the best part of our city -- why would I want to be anywhere else?" 

The new location at 325 Court Street most recently housed Timbers Coffeehouse. The layout of the restaurant has been completely redone under Venti's supervision.  Venti is excited to get started in the new kitchen.

"We are going to start playing with it, having fun with it."

During the last days of preparation, staff could be seen walking from one side of Court Street to the other, paintbrush in hand. Family has played an important role at Venti's Cafe, with both his wife and father-in-law becoming a part of the growing business. Now with a bigger kitchen and seating areas, family recipes have found their way back into Venti's menu. 

"The marinara is absolutely something I've wanted to bring back for a while -- my mom's red sauce served over pasta. I want to bring back skewered meats and offer a variety of spices and styles of cooking,"  Venti said. "It could be something from curry to Southwest BBQ. Who knows? We'll play it by ear, throw specials out there and see what our customers say about them. The menu will definitely be customer-driven.

"Our size at the Reed prohibited expanding the menu too much ­-- our kitchen there was basically a few rice cookers, a steam table, a cold rail and our Flashbake ovens. We did the best we could in that configuration."

Venti also is quick to share that he has cut and served over 50 tons of chicken in the past 12 years.

The interior has been decorated in the hip, fresh way that patrons have come to expect from Venti. The walls are painted dark red and asparagus green. Decorative star lights add to the casual atmosphere. 

Diners will enjoy a much more spacious dining room, complete with booths that have the Venti flare. The new location has over three times the square footage as the old one. There is even more expansion already planned to include a lounge seating area. Outdoor seating is also planned at the new location. 

Venti's will offer a full bar with their expanded hours. They will open in early July, with a ribbon cutting in early August. Hours will be 9 a.m. to 10 p.m., Monday through Saturday.