About – Loius Cairos | Italian Restaurant, Williams, CA

Louis Cairo was the son of Italian immigrants who ventured to the United States seeking the American dream. January and Peppin Cairo eventually settled with their young family in Colusa County in the early 1900’s. They had little money so the entire family worked together picking prunes until they saved enough to buy a prune orchard, then another and another.

Louis, the second youngest of 4 children, had grown into an ambitious, good looking teen. He loved living in a country where he could earn a living by providing people with excellent service. He had secured a job at the beautiful St. Francis Hotel in San Francisco as a bell hop. Louis had a gift for remembering faces and names. He was a master at making everyone feel special and important. Louis’s hobbies included being a talented dancer and vocalist. He performed with some of the popular dance bands in San Francisco.

Louis always remained very close and loyal to his family in Colusa. He eventually returned to Colusa in the 30’s and opened a hamburger joint. He claimed that his hamburgers were the “best ever”. He also ran a gambling business in the back room until he was eventually forced to close. Louis did not qualify for service during World War II but wanted to help the war effort so he applied and was hired on to help build the Liberty Ship in Richmond.

Towards the close of the war, Louis was looking for something service oriented, and in 1945 opened what is now known as Louis Cairo’s not imagining what his restaurant career would become. He and his wife Bula began serving pasta and his now famous “LOUIE BREAD”. Bula juggled being a full time music instructor with the needs of a demanding business, while Louis devoted every moment to the restaurant, always applying the tried and true principals of providing excellent food and service. He took great pride in his establishment. He enjoyed his customers immensely, and was always present sitting and visiting with them. He loved to catch up on the happenings of those who regularly frequented his establishment and equally enjoyed meeting new customers. They were sure to get a story and some famous “LOUIE BREAD”.

Since the inception of the restaurant, it has always been owned and operated by one of the family. When Louis was forced to retire due to illness, his eldest daughter Vicki and her husband Fred ran it for a period of 11 years. Then the torch was passed to his youngest daughter Patti Jo who operated solely for 10 years. At the beginning of 2008 she joined in partnership with Nancy Mayo, Scott Parker and Cristy Edwards. In February of 2015, Chuhar and Harjit Sanghera purchased and took over ownership of the restaurant. Their family, which includes two young children, are dedicated to carrying on Louis’s traditions in his original restaurant that is now over 75 years old. We take great pride that all of our meals and desserts are homemade and that we use only USDA choice beef which is hand cut and trimmed on site. We would like for you to take the opportunity to try her dad’s original creation which has now become our valley famous “LOUIE BREAD”, as the garlic is still layered on extra thick!