Cherished Springfield eatery Avanzare set to move for Mother's Day 2024

When Avanzare Italian Dining opens on Mother’s Day at its new location, 3240 S. Fremont Ave., it will be 22 years of hard work coming to fruition.

With 12,000 square feet, the space will be more than double the restaurant’s size and have multiple concepts under one roof. First, the restaurant will feature all the classic dishes that have lured diners for more than two decades, but there will be monthly wine dinners, a large patio, an extensive bar with small plates, and banquet space.

It has become the dream of the Garcia family, who hopes to pass the restaurant through future generations.

“This is a great adventure for us. It’s like starting all over again,” said Carmen Garcia, whose husband, Tony, opened Avanzare.

The Garcias have been married for 27 years and have three children, ranging in age from 12 to 24. The older two work at the Italian restaurant.

Chuy Garcia, Tony’s younger brother, will be the executive chef when the new venue debuts.

Work ethic started early

Tony and Chuy were raised on a dairy farm in Jalisco, Mexico, where they learned an incredible work ethic. Tony moved to Chicago as a teenager in 1990 with dreams of becoming a professional boxer. He met Carmen at her aunt’s grocery store, a place Tony would stop daily to buy a green apple. One day the cash register didn’t work, so he had to hang around until it was fixed. Tony and Carmen talked and he asked her out. They fell in love and life took a different turn.

Tony’s uncles worked in high-end French and Italian restaurants in Chicago, so he found work washing dishes, bussing tables and whatever was needed.

“I never thought, ‘I am going to be a chef,’” Tony said.

But he was a natural in the kitchen.

Tony was a quick learner, enjoyed cooking and was able to put his creative spin on classic dishes to make them his own. He became skilled in Italian cuisine.

In 1998, Tony Garcia moved to Springfield for a temporary gig at Ristorante Teatro. It was owned by Noble & Associates, and Tony knew the Noble family from its advertising agency in Chicago.

Staying in Springfield, starting a restaurant

Springfield was supposed to be a quick detour, but like so many others who have fallen for the charms of the Queen City, Tony ended up loving it.

“I call this ‘My 20-minute city,’ because you can get anywhere in 20 minutes. Not like the traffic in Chicago. I love it. I will never leave my 20-minute city,” Tony said.

One day he stopped into Metropolitan Grill, which was then housed in the current Avanzare location on Glenstone Avenue, and the owner told Tony that the restaurant was moving.

He suggested Tony take over the space and open his own restaurant. It was the beginning of Avanzare.

Tony opened the restaurant with his brother, Chuy, and another brother who has since left the restaurant business. Chuy was enrolled at Central High School while he worked in the kitchen, and Tony helped raise him.

“I learned a lot from Avanzare,” Chuy said.

The Garcia family is very close, constantly joking back and forth. Chuy says that he and Tony fight like brothers, but also like a father and son.

“But it’s OK. Tequila and beer will fix anything,” Chuy said.

Chuy and Judith’s love story

Judith Martinez had just finished law school and was back home in Mexico when Robert Norton, professor and head of the department of modern and classical languages at Missouri State University, recruited her to come work at MSU for one year.

Her father didn’t want her to leave, because he feared she’d never return.

“I told him I’ve gone overseas before, and I always come back. He said, ‘Yes, but you’re at a dangerous age and you might meet someone,’” Martinez said.

When her plane landed in Springfield, Norton offered to take Judith and her mom to a restaurant. Judith picked Italian.

Perfect.

Norton suggested Avanzare because he was friends with the Garcia family and they were Mexican, and Judith would have something in common with them.

Carmen and Judith bonded immediately.

Avanzare has an open kitchen concept. As Judith sat eating her first meal in Springfield, she spotted a tall, dark haired, light-eyed man in the kitchen. She assumed the chef was Italian. Judith’s dream was to visit Italy.

After a few weeks in Springfield and several visits to Avanzare, the Garcias suggested they introduce Judith to someone to date.

“I said ‘How about your Italian chef?’ They said, ‘What Italian chef?’” chuckles Judith.

Tony’s younger brother Chuy was the tall “Italian” chef in the kitchen. He and Judith have been married for 21 years and have two children.

Bigger and better in 2024

The Garcia family is excited to showcase the new Avanzare space, which Tony says will have a fireplace and better acoustics than the current location.

The dinner menu will be the exact same, but the staff will be able to seat twice as many people. There will be a large, glass wine cellar so customers can ogle at the vino on display. Customers can still count on the extensive wine menu, but there will also be some “Tony picks” of rare wines.

Over the past 20 years, Tony has become very knowledgeable about wine. Regular wine-loving customers who are collectors can reserve a spot in the cellar and have their wine there when they come for dinner.

The restaurant will host monthly or bimonthly wine dinners, where winemakers or brand representatives will come in to educate diners about the wine.

Next, the bar area. The bar will be its own attraction and open at 3 p.m. It will seat up to 70 people and boast drink specials and small plates — this will be the only variation from the traditional menu.

The new spot will also have banquet space for weddings, private parties and business meetings. Between two rooms, the new Avanzare can seat an additional 70-80 people.

There’s also a large patio, so anyone who enjoys al fresco dining can sit outside. The restaurant borders a pond with geese and ducks.

And yes, the new location will still have an open kitchen concept, so customers can watch the chefs toss pasta, sear steaks and flambé dishes.

“If it wasn’t for an open kitchen, we wouldn’t be married,” said Judith.

Support from loyal customers

In the past 22 years, the Garcias have made so many memories and friends through Avanzare.

“Customers become friends. Friends become family,” Chuy said.

The plan is to open on Mother’s Day 2024, traditionally the busiest day of the year for restaurants, according to the National Restaurant Association. For the Garcia family, it’s exciting but also a little nerve-racking.

Tony says he hopes to continue to build on past success and eventually — not anytime soon — pass the torch to his brother and his children to continue the legacy.

“Avanzare has been good to me,” Tony said. “It gave me the chance to learn and meet a lot of nice people in Springfield. I hope to be able to continue to do that. Thanks goes to our customer support all these years. Customers are the key to our success.”