Since Dave can remember, great food has always been a part of his life.  Being Italian by heritage and the son of an owner of Seaway Foods, a business actually started by his grandfather and namesake, it is only natural that food had a lasting impact on Dave! By the age of twelve, Dave was already working in the family business and had his first exposure to being behind the counter at Seaway Foods’ Cash and Carry.  During his teen years, Dave’s dad worked him hard in the million square foot warehouse and unloading rail cars at the food terminal.  With a couple of years of college under his belt and being a people person, Dave went to the corporate office where he gravitated to the sales side of the business.  But, after a few years, the influences of the decade in which he grew up took over.

It has been said that the 1960s was the most significant decade in history and certainly changed the face of America and really the world.  As a product of this decade, Dave was profoundly influenced by the music of the Beatles and other rock and roll and was itching to leave corporate America to pursue his creative dreams.  So, at the age of 23, Dave left Seaway Foods, at the time about a $400 million dollar business, to pursue an acting and singing career in California.

After 10 years of stage acting in over 100 plays and being the songwriter and lead singer in his own rock and roll band, Foreplay, Dave came back to his home in Cleveland where he met and married Mary Ann.

Ever the creative entrepreneur, Dave went back to his roots and true loves – food and rock ‘n’ roll, and in 1997 created The Original Cosmic Dave’s™ in Chagrin Falls, Ohio.

Inspired by the memory of sharing great sandwiches late at night with his dad and the music of the decade that shaped who Dave had become, Dave knew what to look for in the right kind of bread, sauces and combinations of the highest quality ingredients to create the “ultimate sub that rocked.”

Combining Dave’s creativity with Mary Ann’s operational expertise, the franchise has grown from the little house turned sub shop in Chagrin Falls to a franchise with stores currently in four states and looking to expand into more.  True to the franchise’s mission of “Spreading Love Around The World One Sub At A Time” Dave’s vision is becoming a reality!