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Light Rain Fog/Mist Borrelli mournedRestaurateur dies at age 72
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³In the early 1990s my father wanted to give back to the community,² said Frank Borelli Jr., part owner of Borrelli¹s. ³He wanted to do something special for needy families on Christmas day. With the help of the Kiwanis Club, we were able to open the restaurant to needy people. At first we served seniors, but soon we began catering to families going through rough times.²
Frank Jr. added that there was one man in particular who was especially touched by his father¹s generosity. ³There was an electrician who had cut off his fingers and had no insurance,² he recalled. ³He was down on his luck, but a year later he was back on his feet. He was so thankful that he came back to the restaurant with presents for other families.
³That is just something my dad wanted to do. Now we serve between 70 and 140 people every Christmas, and we receive tons of thank-you notes and volunteers. It¹s just a great day, and my kids see this and that¹s their Christmas.²
That was just one of the many ways Borrelli, 72, touched the lives of the people around him. Whether it was a family member or friend, anyone who met him was enriched by his presence. That¹s why it was such a shock for residents to hear that Borrelli died on March 17 in Florida, just three years after his retirement. He was buried on Monday at St. Charles Cemetery in Suffolk County.
Allen Alterman, president of the East Meadow Kiwanis Club, called Borrelli a pillar of the community, while longtime friend Alan Beinhacker described him simply as a good man. ³He had a great sense of humor,² Beinhacker said. ³He always had a smile and was just a good guy. I¹m really going to miss him.²
Lisa Borrelli-Savino, Frank Sr.¹s youngest daughter, said that on St. Patrick¹s Day, her father was telling jokes and just lost his breath. ³He was always the life of the party,² she said. ³He was the best, and lived an amazing life.²
Borrelli was born in 1934 in Italy, and was the youngest of three boys. His family arrived in the U.S. in 1937, when Frank was 3, and he walked through Ellis Island with his parents, Joseph and Maria, and his brothers, Al, now 78, and Phil, 75.
The Borrellis settled on 110th Street in Harlem, where Frank¹s father worked as a tailor and his mother was a factory worker. Frank inherited his work ethic from his parents, and it was common for him to wake up early in the morning, take the train to Wall Street and shine shoes.
When he wasn¹t working, Frank was playing stickball or basketball at a local Boys Club. When he finished high school, he enlisted in the Army and served in the Korean War. Afterward he toured Europe as a semipro athlete. ³He was such a great athlete,² said Frank Jr. ³He traveled around Europe playing baseball and basketball.²
Frank returned home at age 21 and began working with his brothers, who were learning the restaurant business. ³My uncles taught my dad how to cook,² said Frank Jr. ³And in 1955, they pulled their money together and bought a small hamburger place [on what was then known as Fulton Avenue] in East Meadow and turned it into a pizzeria.²
The Borrelli brothers bought the restaurant and the surrounding property for $100,000. They struggled in the beginning. Frank was the waiter, Phil the pizza maker and Al the cook. It wasn¹t until 1961 that they began to expand their restaurant from a seating capacity of 40 people to 200.
Today, as a testament to their success, the restaurant boasts more than 30 employees: five chefs, two pizza men, one salad man, two bartenders, two hostesses, 10 waiters, two phone receptionists for takeout orders, a cashier, three busboys and four dishwashers.
Frank¹s brothers eventually retired, Phil in 1968 and Al in 1975, but he still honored their shares in the restaurant. ³My uncles eventually moved to Florida,² said Frank Jr. ³And my father still kept them as partners and made sure they received their shares. We have fed a lot of our family with this place.²
Borrelli was loyal not only to his family, but to his workers, treating them as equals. ³It was my dad¹s personality,² Frank Jr. said. ³He always kept himself at the same level of his employees, and that is something he passed on to us. We are hands-on and keep everyone as equals. If we need to wash dishes, we do it.²
Frank Jr. said that it was that kind of treatment that won the business not only the loyalty of its employees, but that of its family members as well. ³There are at least six people in his restaurant that have been working here for the last 30 years,² he said. ³I am 47 years old, and I have been working here since I was 11. Now I have my daughters Kristin, 23, and Jenna, 20, and my wife, Beth, working here.²
Frank Jr. said he was never forced to work in the restaurant, but was lured by the atmosphere his father created. He also learned to never become a slave to work. ³I give myself good hours,² he said. ³I work from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., and we have a closing manager. Some people never leave their stores because they don¹t trust people. They eventually become prisoners. My dad taught me to trust and to enjoy life.²
It was that philosophy that also attracted Frank Jr.¹s younger sisters, Angela and Lisa, into the family business. ³My father made life so good, and we all worked together, and that made us love the restaurant,² said Lisa. ³He was so committed to us and we were so committed to him. When we were little we would go to Italy every year. Every Monday the restaurant was closed, and we would all eat together. It was our Sunday.²
Borrelli is survived by his wife, Katina, whom he married at age 23, his children, and eight grandchildren, Kristin, Jenna, Stephen, Anthony, Frank III, Brandon, Robert and Eric.
Comments about this story?
Hflores@liherald.com or (516) 569-4000 ext. 283.
Frank Jr. added that there was one man in particular who was especially touched by his father¹s generosity. ³There was an electrician who had cut off his fingers and had no insurance,² he recalled. ³He was down on his luck, but a year later he was back on his feet. He was so thankful that he came back to the restaurant with presents for other families.
³That is just something my dad wanted to do. Now we serve between 70 and 140 people every Christmas, and we receive tons of thank-you notes and volunteers. It¹s just a great day, and my kids see this and that¹s their Christmas.²
That was just one of the many ways Borrelli, 72, touched the lives of the people around him. Whether it was a family member or friend, anyone who met him was enriched by his presence. That¹s why it was such a shock for residents to hear that Borrelli died on March 17 in Florida, just three years after his retirement. He was buried on Monday at St. Charles Cemetery in Suffolk County.
Allen Alterman, president of the East Meadow Kiwanis Club, called Borrelli a pillar of the community, while longtime friend Alan Beinhacker described him simply as a good man. ³He had a great sense of humor,² Beinhacker said. ³He always had a smile and was just a good guy. I¹m really going to miss him.²
Borrelli was born in 1934 in Italy, and was the youngest of three boys. His family arrived in the U.S. in 1937, when Frank was 3, and he walked through Ellis Island with his parents, Joseph and Maria, and his brothers, Al, now 78, and Phil, 75.
The Borrellis settled on 110th Street in Harlem, where Frank¹s father worked as a tailor and his mother was a factory worker. Frank inherited his work ethic from his parents, and it was common for him to wake up early in the morning, take the train to Wall Street and shine shoes.
When he wasn¹t working, Frank was playing stickball or basketball at a local Boys Club. When he finished high school, he enlisted in the Army and served in the Korean War. Afterward he toured Europe as a semipro athlete. ³He was such a great athlete,² said Frank Jr. ³He traveled around Europe playing baseball and basketball.²
Frank returned home at age 21 and began working with his brothers, who were learning the restaurant business. ³My uncles taught my dad how to cook,² said Frank Jr. ³And in 1955, they pulled their money together and bought a small hamburger place [on what was then known as Fulton Avenue] in East Meadow and turned it into a pizzeria.²
The Borrelli brothers bought the restaurant and the surrounding property for $100,000. They struggled in the beginning. Frank was the waiter, Phil the pizza maker and Al the cook. It wasn¹t until 1961 that they began to expand their restaurant from a seating capacity of 40 people to 200.
Today, as a testament to their success, the restaurant boasts more than 30 employees: five chefs, two pizza men, one salad man, two bartenders, two hostesses, 10 waiters, two phone receptionists for takeout orders, a cashier, three busboys and four dishwashers.
Frank¹s brothers eventually retired, Phil in 1968 and Al in 1975, but he still honored their shares in the restaurant. ³My uncles eventually moved to Florida,² said Frank Jr. ³And my father still kept them as partners and made sure they received their shares. We have fed a lot of our family with this place.²
Borrelli was loyal not only to his family, but to his workers, treating them as equals. ³It was my dad¹s personality,² Frank Jr. said. ³He always kept himself at the same level of his employees, and that is something he passed on to us. We are hands-on and keep everyone as equals. If we need to wash dishes, we do it.²
Frank Jr. said that it was that kind of treatment that won the business not only the loyalty of its employees, but that of its family members as well. ³There are at least six people in his restaurant that have been working here for the last 30 years,² he said. ³I am 47 years old, and I have been working here since I was 11. Now I have my daughters Kristin, 23, and Jenna, 20, and my wife, Beth, working here.²
Frank Jr. said he was never forced to work in the restaurant, but was lured by the atmosphere his father created. He also learned to never become a slave to work. ³I give myself good hours,² he said. ³I work from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., and we have a closing manager. Some people never leave their stores because they don¹t trust people. They eventually become prisoners. My dad taught me to trust and to enjoy life.²
It was that philosophy that also attracted Frank Jr.¹s younger sisters, Angela and Lisa, into the family business. ³My father made life so good, and we all worked together, and that made us love the restaurant,² said Lisa. ³He was so committed to us and we were so committed to him. When we were little we would go to Italy every year. Every Monday the restaurant was closed, and we would all eat together. It was our Sunday.²
Borrelli is survived by his wife, Katina, whom he married at age 23, his children, and eight grandchildren, Kristin, Jenna, Stephen, Anthony, Frank III, Brandon, Robert and Eric.
Comments about this story?
Hflores@liherald.com or (516) 569-4000 ext. 283.
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