DeFazio’s owner touched as Wichita fans stand in long line for one last taste of his food
Pete DeFazio said he knew his customers would be distressed about news he’d closed his restaurant at 2706 N. Amidon after nearly 40 years in business.
But he didn’t anticipate the outpouring of support — and even tearful farewells — that greeted him when he opened DeFazio’s one last time on Saturday to clear out some inventory and allow his customers one last chance to pick up some of their favorite dishes.
Now, the events of Saturday have him rethinking a declaration he made on Wednesday — the day he announced that he’d closed his longtime Italian restaurant.
He was emotional about his decision that day, he said, and when I interviewed him, he said he wanted to sell his restaurant and would even sell the recipes to the right buyer. But the new owners would have to come up with their own name and couldn’t use DeFazio’s, he said Wednesday.
After talking to his longtime fans on Saturday, though, DeFazio had a change of heart. People clearly want the restaurant to continue, he said, and although he can’t do it — issues with his knees are forcing him to retire — maybe there’s someone who can. If the right person comes along and wants to buy the restaurant, name and all, he’d sell it, he said on Monday.
He said he’s already fielded several offers.
“If anyone wants to talk about it, they can talk to me first,” he said. “There were a lot of people who said they would continue going, and I don’t think anyone would have any issues if they could find the help.”
DeFazio, who was 23 when he opened his restaurant in 1982, said that after he announced its closure, he realized he still had a lot of food he could sell, including 91 pounds of pickled eggplant and 60 pints of cream of mushroom soup. On Friday afternoon, he announced a last-minute carryout sale and gift card reimbursement event, scheduled for noon to 4 p.m. on Saturday.
He said that fans started lining up at 9:20 a.m. to make sure they’d get their chance at minestrone soup, meatballs, take-and-bake lasagna and more. By noon, a long line of people stretched around the building, he said.
Though he planned to keep selling until 4 p.m., DeFazio said, he was out of food in two hours and 45 minutes. Several people who stood in line left with nothing — despite the fact that DeFazio mixed up more salad dressing and even sold off his jars of cherry peppers.
“I knew we were going to be busy, but I didn’t imagine that,” DeFazio said. “It made me feel good.”
It also made him feel a little sad, he admitted, especially when he talked to customers with tears in their eyes. Each wanted to tell him stories of how much the restaurant had meant to them over the years.
Anyone who wants to talk to DeFazio about buying the restaurant, he said, can send him a message through Facebook: www.facebook.com/defaziositalian
He said he’d update me if he found the right buyer.
This story was originally published October 11, 2021 at 12:13 PM.
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