Sesame Cafe To Change Ownership

By SHELLEY HANSON
WHEELING — Young Kralovic decided Wheeling was the place to be after hearing John Denver describe West Virginia as ‘‘Almost Heaven’’ in ‘‘Take Me Home, Country Roads.’’

She left her native Korea for the city in 1976. After working for years in various restaurants, cleaning hotels and caring for the elderly, she saved enough money to pursue becoming an independent businesswoman — and the Sesame Cafe at 1010 Main St. was born.

‘‘It was always my dream to have a little cafe — and I made it,’’ Kralovic said.

Twenty-three years later, Young said it’s time to retire and spend time with her children and grandchildren. She will turn 62 years old in May.

Friday is her last day as owner of the eatery. Her longtime friends, Don and Nancy Decena, are taking over the business, located across the street from the Capitol Music Hall. The menu and services are expected to stay about the same.

‘‘Doc and Chickie used to date here,’’ Kralovic said of country music stars Doc Williams and his late wife, Chickie Williams, who died in 2007. ‘‘Their children come and their grandchildren and great, great-grandchildren. It’s very small, but has a lot of history.’’

The cafe, she noted, is older than the Capitol Music Hall that was built in 1928. And though it may be difficult to tell from the street, the bulk of the structure is not actually a building at all — it’s a trolley car, she said. A restroom was added in the rear, and the kitchen was attached to the south side.

‘‘All the customers are new. Right now it’s all new people. A lot of the customers have passed away. It’s not like it used to be,’’ she said, pointing out photographs lining the walls of musicians who visited the cafe after shows at the now-closed Capitol.

Kralovic noted she does serve some customers from nearby office buildings, such as the Stone Center, but she said many people eat lunch from ‘‘sandwich machines’’ — they’re too busy at work to eat lunch out these days.

Don Decena, a native of the Philippines, has been in West Virginia since 1986. He has been friends with Kralovic for many years, and his wife also works as a waitress at the Sesame.

‘‘It’s really personal,’’ Don said of his reason for taking over the cafe. ‘‘It has sentimental value. She’s the best friend I ever had. And the American dream or whatever.’’

Don is a bassist with band The Vogues and plays with others on request.

‘‘Music is my main thing, but I love cooking, too,’’ he said.

Except for a couple new items, Don said the menu won’t change much. It is described as ‘‘homestyle American and Oriental’’ on the cafe’s sign. And the hours of operation will remain the same: 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Friday. It’s closed Saturdays and Sundays.

Kralovic said she intends to visit the Sesame and pitch in on occasion.

Nancy Decena said she doesn’t foresee the atmosphere changing much at the cafe. What she loves most about working there — the people — won’t change after she officially becomes co-owner today.

‘‘People say it’s like being at home,’’ she said. ‘‘They’re having a bad day and tell you what’s going on at work, and you tell them, ‘Yeah, I’m having a bad day, too.’’’