Barstool Sports activities Will save Extended Island’s Borrelli’s Restaurant

EAST MEADOW, NY — Borrelli’s has been a staple of Italian dining on Long Island for 65 yrs. But the coronavirus pandemic hit the East Meadow restaurant really hard, and operator Frank Borrelli, Jr. was most likely going to have to close. But then a holiday miracle arrived from an not likely source — sports followers.

Dave Portnoy, the founder of Barstool Sporting activities, is pals with Borrelli’s son, Frankie. In addition to sporting activities blogging, Portnoy is well-regarded for performing critiques of pizza in the New York and New Jersey area. Frankie Borrelli is his cameraman for all those testimonials. Hearing about the problems that Borrelli’s, and numerous other tiny corporations, had been having, Portnoy produced the Barstool Fund.

The aim of the Barstool Fund, of which Borrelli’s was the first recipient, is to preserve some smaller firms and restaurants open up through the pandemic. Portnoy and Barstool Sports contributed $500,000 to get the fund started before this thirty day period. Given that then, it has lifted a lot more than $2.6 million via donations.

During the pandemic Borrelli’s has ongoing to fork out its workers, which Portnoy mentioned motivated him. The major need for organizations to get funding from the Barstool Fund is that they should continue to be spending their staff members. The fund will pay the fees of the corporations as extended as they need in order to keep open up.

“We were being breaking even during the summer months,” Frank Borrelli Jr. stated in an psychological online video on Facebook. “I got my workers. They have been all getting paid. And I explained we will make it via Christmas. January, February, March, I was arranging on closing…This is likely to enable so considerably. You really don’t know. Thank you from the base of my coronary heart.”

Because its launch in mid-December, the Barstool Fund has served other dining establishments, as perfectly: Trattoria L’incontro in Queens The Village Trestle in Goffstown, New Hampshire Pink Rock Tavern in Hartford, Connecticut and Abbey Bar in De Pere, Wisconsin. A lot more are coming as very well.

One particular way the fund raises money for the restaurants is by marketing products of the restaurant. All of the proceeds from the profits go specifically to the places to eat. You can get by yourself a Borrelli’s T-shirt or hoodie, and assist the cafe in the approach, by clicking here. You can also donate to the Barstool Fund right here.