Restaurateurs feed evacuees meals

When life gives you lemons, you make lemonade.
And when Mother Nature served up Hurricane Irene, the Russo brothers – owners and operators of Russo’s on the Bay and Villa Russo – served up hundreds of meals to those forced to evacuate.
“We got a call from City Councilmember Eric Ulrich at 2 or 3 p.m. on Saturday [August 27],” said George Russo, of Villa Russo. “They had 400 people at John Adams High School [an evacuation center] and were expecting more. He wasn’t sure how they were going to be fed.”
So, with weddings, baptisms and other scheduled functions postponed due to the storm, Russo said, they got to work.
“We had some cancellations, as you might expect,” he said. “We had our crews here, so we got to work.”
By about 5 p.m., Russo said, they had prepared 50 trays of food – from pastas to salads to eggplant, turkey, chicken, vegetables and potatoes – each serving between 20 and 25 people.
“We feed hundreds and hundreds of people each weekend,” he noted. “It’s what we do and the timing was perfect.”
Ulrich provided transport for the meals, and the Russos and their crews helped hand out the food.
“There were a lot of people in need,” said Russo. “There was no food in the building because school wasn’t in session.”
Russo noted that both Russo’s on the Bay and Villa Russo have grown and thrived over the years thanks to the community, so giving back was just a natural progression.
“We did whatever we could to help the neighborhood,” he told The Courier. “It was our pleasure to meet the pressing need in the community. We are proud of the way they came together.
“We’re very proud to be a part of the community,” he continued. “Without their support we wouldn’t be here. This was a continuing attempt on our part to give back to a community that’s been so supportive. It gave me a feeling I was part of the relief effort – it was very gratifying coming to the aid of the community since we were able to do our part.”
Plus, he quipped, “It gave us something to do that day.”
“We got a lot of recognition on Facebook, and I got a kick out of the responses,” said Russo. “But I also have to give kudos to Eric [Ulrich] for tipping us off and putting a need together with a solution.”