Years of Family Service: Air Force, Seniors, Restaurants, Events
By EMILY CANNING-DEAN
Special To MedinaCountyLIVE.com
WADSWORTH – It wasn’t until January of 2000 when Robert and Phyllis Leatherman opened The Galaxy in Wadsworth. But their son, Sean, believes the inspiration for this beloved community venue began decades earlier.
Today, this prominent entertainment complex houses the Circle L Steakhouse, A Wine Room, the Galaxy Sports Bar & Patio, and a large Banquet Center entertainment venue hosting wedding, concerts, and many special events.
“Back in the 1950s when my dad was in the Air Force, he got into food service,” Leatherman said. “He was the manager of the dining hall in the Air Force base in Albuquerque. That was during the Korean War. Then when he and my mom came back, they managed a Big Boy Restaurant for a few years. In fact, the “Ham B Burger” which we have on our menu is a recipe he made when he was at the Big Boy.”
By the 1960s, the Leathermans opened their own restaurant, Michael’s, in downtown Barberton and two other restaurants in Akron. “Then in 1972 they got into the nursing home business when a doctor friend of my dad’s was looking for someone to manage a nursing home,” Leatherman said. “He and my mom had been working seven days a week and decided they wanted to do something different. So, they got into the nursing home business and expanded it.”
“…I think we drew up the first plan for The Galaxy on a napkin….”
Leatherman said he and his three siblings grew up working in the nursing home business until the late 90s when a company approached the Leathermans because they were interested in purchasing their nursing homes.
“They sold the nursing homes and my dad mentioned that he always wanted to open a restaurant in his hometown of Wadsworth, so we started talking about the concept of The Galaxy,” Leatherman said. “I think we drew up the first plan for The Galaxy on a napkin.”
Robert and Phyllis Leatherman began their work in the local hospitality industry when they managed a Manner’s Big Boy Restaurant in the 1950s. The couple also ran Michael’s Restaurant in downtown Barberton before opening the Galaxy.
The Galaxy - three dining concepts under one roof
The Galaxy opened in January of 2000 and included a banquet center, a fine dining restaurant and a sports bar. By June of that year, the Leathermans opened the Holiday Inn Express next door.
“We wanted the hotel because we thought that would go well with the banquet center,” Leatherman said. “Actually, now we own six hotels.”
The Circle L Ranch in Burbank, Ohio has been operated by the Leatherman family for over 40 years. The company specializes in raising high-quality Limousin and Angus cattle. The farm’s beef is featured in the Galaxy’s steakhouse in Wadsworth.
Restaurant connects Circle L beef farm in Burbank
The Leathermans expanded the Galaxy in 2006 by adding the patio off the sports bar, increasing the size of the banquet center and adding the wine room. In 2012 they reconfigured the fine dining room into the Circle L Steakhouse.
“…Circle L is the name of the family beef cattle farm in Burbank….”
“Circle L is the name of the family beef cattle farm in Burbank,” Leatherman said. “We got more into providing beef from the farm to the restaurant and that’s when we decided we wanted to go with the steakhouse concept.”
Leatherman said all the hamburger and ground beef for the restaurant is supplied by the farm and The Galaxy runs a featured Circle L steak such as a bone-in ribeye or filet which comes from the farm.
In 2014 the Leathermans opened a second hotel adjacent to The Galaxy.
“When we first bought the hotel, it was a Ramada and needed some help, so we opened it as a Comfort Inn & Suites after an extensive renovation,” Leatherman said. “We have always said it is the nicest Comfort Inn in Ohio. Actually, the hotel brand is changing to Garner and we hope to celebrate the new brand around May of this year.”
Galaxy Wadsworth beginnings include fun folklore
Leatherman said he isn’t sure how he and his family decided on the name for The Galaxy, but he remembers the name is something his mother brought up and it seemed to stick.
“Then we had the different concepts in The Galaxy with the starlit sky ceiling in the sports bar and the cloud sky in the dining room and banquet room,” he said.
As they planned for the opening of the venue, the Leathermans went to an auction in Georgia where they purchased full sized working replica of the robot from Lost in Space.
“We were going to put it in the lobby and make in The Galaxy mascot,” Leatherman said. “But during the shipping, the truck went into a ditch, and it was damaged. The driver, I think trying to hide the evidence, left the robot in the ditch. Then there was this story in the National Enquirer that read ‘Lost in Space robot gets lost on its way to sports bar in Ohio.’ I think I still have the article saved somewhere.”
Galaxy menus offer something for everyone
Whether guests are dining at the steakhouse, the wine room or the sports bar and patio, Leatherman said the menu is diverse enough to appeal to many different tastes.
“All our steaks are on our sports bar menu,” Leatherman said. “The sports bar menu offers our burgers and a lot of appetizers and wings while our wine room menu has higher end entrees like sea bass or crab legs. But we are flexible. If someone dining in the sports bar wants sea bass or someone in the wine room has a craving for wings, we can accommodate that.”
Leatherman said The Galaxy of Wadsworth also offers a special chef’s menu every two weeks.
“We used to change the menu every week, but we found a customer might miss a week and miss out on their favorite dish, so we found two weeks works better,” he said. “The menu will usually include three special appetizers, a couple of salads, four or five entrees and a Circle L featured steak. Our in-house pastry chef also makes something special for the menu.”
Guests can also purchase pastries and treats at The Galaxy Market which is inside the venue.
“The Market is kind of the center where customers can buy a ticket to one of our events or they can buy the maple syrup that we make on the farm,” Leatherman said. “We also have a retail portion for our entire wine list at the market where people can buy our wine at state minimum prices.”
Continuing into the future
While there aren’t any major renovations planned for the future, Leatherman said the family is always working to improve the Galaxy.
“Within the last six months, we installed all new televisions in the sports bar,” he said. “We have also added new carpet and did some painting in the banquet center and we have new bar stools for the patio. We are constantly working to stay ahead of the curve.”
Now 96 and 95 respectively, Leatherman said his parents are enjoying life at the farm, but added they still have an active interest in the business.
“Dad was just up here for a meeting earlier today,” Leatherman said.
After serving the community for 26 years, Leatherman said The Galaxy has many longstanding customers, but they are always excited to welcome newcomers.
“We have many customers who have grown with us, but there have been many times someone will come in and say ‘gosh, this is the first time I’ve been here. I didn’t know this was here,’ and they live just five minutes away,” Leatherman said.
The Galaxy Restaurant
History Timeline
- 1950s – Founder Robert Leatherman works food service at Air Force Base in Albuquerque, New Mexico.
- Late 1950s – Following Korean War, Robert and wife Phyllis return to run Manners Big Boy Restaurant.
- 1960s – Couple opens Michael’s Restaurant in Downtown Barberton.
- 1972 – Physician friend entices Robert and Phyllis into managing local nursing homes.
- Late 1990s – Leatherman family sells nursing home properties.
- January 2000 – The Galaxy Restaurant officials opens in the Wadsworth community.
- June 2000 – Family opens Holiday Inn Express directly adjacent to the Galaxy.
- 2006 – Galaxy Sports Bar adds patio, Wine Room is opened.
- 2012 – Dining room is converted and opened as Circle L Steakhouse.
- 2014 – Family opens second hotel on property – later re-branded as Comfort Inn & Suites.
LIVE Talk: Sean Leatherman Talks The Galaxy Restaurant, Entertainment
AUDIO FEATURE:
Sean Leatherman / Emily Canning-Dean
LIVE Talk is an audio feature of the Medina County Time Capsule:
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