He was once a dishwasher at Havertown’s Lamplighter Tavern. Today, Kevin Addis owns two successful Philadelphia restaurants, writes Michael Bradley for Main Line Today.

His latest endeavor, Mari BYO, a Queen village BYO, was ready to go back in March.

“Then corona came and made everything different,” says the 36-year-old Ardmore man.

He opened five months later.

“The response has been good,” he says.

His long-time friend Mike Corsetti, who owns a New Jersey barbecue business, describes Addis as a man with a “lot of guts” and a “lot of motivation.”

Addis put in time at Mari’s after its opening, cooking every night, creating menus to match the flavor profiles of his diners.

The restaurant leans toward Italian-style seafood, but there’s also chicken and lamb.

When things settle in at Mari’s, Addis will revisit the kitchen at Entrée BYOB, his other restaurant on South Street.

Addis was raised on the Main Line until his family moved to central Pennsylvania. He found work as a dishwasher at the Hummingbird Room in Spring Mills.

Addis moved up to line cook and decided he wanted to be a chef.

Now, several years later, he’s a restauranteur.

Read more about Kevin Addis at Main Line Today.