Andrea Cerasuoli hasn’t been herself since a fire in early April destroyed Ortobello, the popular Italian restaurant in Bensonhurst that her father started in 1974.
“In a way, I don’t want to say I’m depressed,” Serrasuoli, 48, told the Post on Monday. “But I feel depressed because of the whole fire situation.
“I’ve never recovered from the shock,” the Brooklyn restaurateur continued. “That’s all I’m thinking about. Looking ahead, I want to reopen and get back on track. I didn’t shave for a few weeks. I shaved for the first time yesterday.”
The fire started in the exhaust system around 6pm on April 6th (luckily on a Saturday night), ripped through the kitchen, blew out a window and left a charred, blackened mess.
Cerasuoli said the kitchen needs a new ceiling, vents and ductwork. Once approved by your insurance company, the process will take approximately one week.
“I’m going to restart, there’s no doubt about it,” the father of two vowed. “I come here every day. I don’t want to put the restaurant out of business. It’s been tough…I haven’t worked in a little over two weeks. My heart is here.”
Despite the challenges, the Bensonhurst community came together to support the 40-seat facility at the corner of Bay Parkway and 64th Street.
A GoFundMe set up to help pay for Cerasuoli’s repairs has already raised more than $16,000 of its $75,000 goal. Loyal customers love the delicious stuffed artichokes, the melty fried carrozza, and the mouth-watering chicken parmigiana with spicy vodka sauce.
“That chicken parm (and everything else on the menu) needs to survive,” one man wrote on the fundraising page. “I hope you come back stronger than ever!”
Several Ortobello regulars also stopped by in person Monday to help.
“They had good food, what can I say?” Pat Fleming of Gravesend told the Post of when she stopped by to donate cash for the reconstruction.
Fleming and his wife have been coming to the corner restaurant once or twice a month for the past 30 years, and he said he’s never had a bad meal.
“A lot of the people who come here have been here for a long time,” Fleming said. “When you come here, you’re treated like family. And Andy’s a nice guy — Andy’s a nice guy.”
Cerasuoli said she was overwhelmed by the amount of donations and could not believe the generosity of people.
But he felt better knowing his customers wouldn’t abandon him.
“We are a family here,” he said. “I know everyone who comes here, [their] first name. When they come over, we talk about my children and their children, and they ask how my mother is and I ask how their mother is. Everyone was very cooperative. ”
Anna Ojeda, 71, who lives in the neighborhood, said there is always a line every Sunday afternoon.
“It’s a very good restaurant. The food is delicious and the service is great,” Ojeda said, noting that he is a fan of the calamari and chicken parm.
“They’ve been here a long time and are a great addition to this area,” she continued. “We get a lot of Italians from outside the neighborhood. We hope to see them back soon.”
Cerasuoli said a grand opening can’t happen soon.
“The bills haven’t stopped. I still have to pay gas, electricity and rent to my landlord,” Cerasuoli said. “Everyone still wants to get paid. One of the difficult parts of not being open is there’s no money coming in.”
But he promises the place will survive, as it has every year since his late father Luigi opened its doors all those years ago.
“Everything in the neighborhood has changed, except for us,” he said. “Other stores have come and gone over the years. But we’re still here.”
