A New Home on Genesee Street
The building at 62 Genesee Street has been part of Greene's main strip for over a century. It's a Victorian-era storefront with an ornate cornice and the year "1892" stamped right into the peak — the kind of building that makes you look up when you walk past it. It's been a lot of things over the years. Most recently, it was Patockas Gastropub, which closed its doors in February 2025. After that, the space sat empty. Just a dark storefront on a block that could use some life.
A few towns over, Travis Evans had been running the Airport Inn near the Greater Binghamton Airport for over twenty years. The place was a legend — over 100 wing flavors, a loyal crowd, the kind of bar where everyone knew everyone. He'd survived a fire that destroyed the original building in 2019, rebuilt bigger and better, and kept going through COVID. By any measure, things were going well.
But Travis was thinking about something different.
In November 2023, he put the Binghamton location up for sale. He told people operations were going "very well" — the restaurant had about 30 employees and steady business. But after two decades, he wanted a change. Not out of the restaurant business. Just a different version of it. Something he could build from scratch with fresh energy.
Then he met Melissa Hunt.
Melissa had the business bug. She'd already made one big career pivot — from dental hygienist to running a clothing boutique. She had roots in the Greene area, connections in the community, and the kind of energy that makes things happen fast. When she and Travis started talking about what a new Airport Inn could look like, it clicked.
They weren't going to franchise the Binghamton location or slap the same logo on a different building. They were going to build something that belonged to Greene. Same legendary wings, same family-first approach, but with its own identity — a restaurant designed for this town, on this street, for these people.
They took over the space at 62 Genesee. Renovated. Built out a kitchen that could handle the full Airport Inn menu. Added things the Binghamton location never had: a patio with a stone fireplace and gas fire pit for year-round outdoor dining. Weekend brunch with mimosa flights in seven flavors. Spin the Wheel Thursdays. Live music on weekends.
The soft launch and ribbon-cutting ceremony happened on Monday, July 7, 2025. The photo tells the story — Travis and Melissa standing behind a red ribbon, two boys holding giant scissors, a blue, white, and gold balloon arch framing the entrance, and a chalkboard sign reading "Welcome Airport Inn Greene." Regular service started the next day, Tuesday July 8th, at 11 AM. The official grand opening was Friday, July 11th.
The menu carried over from the original — wings, burgers, pizza, all the classics. But Greene got its own additions. The brunch menu alone was worth the trip: protein bowls, breakfast pizzas, loaded hangover nachos, the Travis Sandwich. Mimosa flights in flavors like Cherry Sunshine and Peach Bellini. The kind of brunch where you show up at 11 and look up at 2 wondering where the time went.
The local press covered the opening. WICZ ran a piece noting that "Evans and Hunt hope the Greene location will become another beloved community hub where locals can gather, dine, and connect." That was the goal from day one. Not just a restaurant. A place.
Seven months later, on February 28, 2026, Travis held a retirement party at the Binghamton Airport Inn. He was 48 years old. He'd spent more than half his life in that building — or rather, in the two buildings that had stood on that spot. He handed the keys to a group that included two people who'd worked there for years. He told WNBF he'd be "keeping busy" with the Greene location.
And that was that. No more splitting time between two restaurants. No more juggling two staffs, two kitchens, two sets of problems. Just Greene.
Travis and Melissa. One restaurant. Their restaurant. A Victorian building with "1892" above the door and a future that's just getting started.
The patio's open. The wings are ready. The door's unlocked. Come see what they're building.
← Back to Our Story