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Chicopee couple fulfill dream with new business

By G. Michael Dobbs

Managing Editor



CHICOPEE Tim Ruel was training to be a teacher when he and his wife Tanya saw an ad for a turn-key business a restaurant in Chicopee Falls. Ruel, who had worked in restaurants for 20 years and loves to cook decided to get back into the business, this time with his wife.

"We always both thought of opening a restaurant," Ruel said.

Their TNT Restaurant at 82 Main St. had its official grand opening on Friday after a four-week "soft" opening in which Ruel said they "worked out the kinks."

Open from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. seven days a week, TNT serves breakfast, lunch and dinner and has delivery service available for all of Chicopee and some parts of Springfield.

Ruel is a Chicopee native who said he cooked across the country, but "always came to Chicopee." His recipes are gathered from family members, such the "Bobbie's Beans" from his mother and "Tessa's Meatball Lasagna" from his wife's grandmother.

Ruel said it took him and his wife six months to prepare for the new business. They tested dishes at their home to their friends and family and from the response chose "the best of the best recipes."

The menu includes a full range of breakfast items as well as deli sandwiches and grinders. Ruel is proud of his selection of chicken wings and had several varieties a boneless bourbon barbeque, traditional Buffalo wing and honey mustard on a free buffet during the grand opening.

The menu also includes dinners such as chicken Francaise, pork teriyaki, baked scallops and pasta dishes.

Ruel was a cross-country truck diver for 10 years, and he said he understands the importance of value in a meal, so his goal is to make money through volume, rather than high individual prices.