After nearly 10 years serving wood-fired pizzas, Italian food and cocktails from its Woodmont Triangle space, the owners of Bethesda’s Alatri Bros. have called it quits and officially closed the restaurant on Friday.
Alatri Bros., owned by brothers Roberto and Riccardo Pietrobono, was located at 4926 Cordell Ave. and opened in 2016 after taking over the former Mia’s Pizzas space. The brothers also own Italian restaurant Olazzo in Bethesda and Mexican restaurant Gringos & Mariachis in Bethesda and Potomac.
Roberto Pietrobono told Bethesda Today on Thursday that there were a variety of factors behind the closure of Alatri Bros. Rising food and utility costs, changes in consumer behavior post-COVID and a tough winter for business are a few factors that played a role.
“It’s a tough business. Everyone will tell you that,” Pietrobono said.
The restaurant announced its closure to the community via social media on Thursday, one day before the final day of service.
“It has been an absolute honor and privilege to serve the Bethesda community all these years,” the restaurant team wrote in the post. “We are deeply grateful for your incredible support, loyal patronage, and the outpouring of kindness you have shown us throughout the decade. Our gratitude runs deep.”
Under the post are dozens of comments expressing sadness about the closure and appreciation for the restaurant, its employees and food.
“Deliveries from your restaurant have fed my family some fantastic meals! I’ll miss your chicken piccata and that amazing pizza crust,” one comment said.
Another comment called the closing “heartbreaking” and said the restaurant was their family’s go-to on Friday nights. “Thank you for making our Friday nights wonderful. The staff made us feel so comfortable and at home,” the comment said.
Pietrobono told Bethesda Today that the restaurant had a “great run.”
“A lot of people loved it. I had regulars all the time,” he added. “There’s never a good way to close a restaurant and obviously because of recent happenings, it was really tough.”
Earlier this month, the restaurant’s head chef Emerson “Wilber” Melendez died unexpectedly. According to Pietrobono, Melendez was a longstanding employee of the restaurant and had worked at Mia’s Pizzas before Alatri Bros. took over.
“He came up from dishwasher to be the head chef,” Pietrobono said. “He was pretty much self-trained, hardworking. Probably out of all the employees I’ve had, he was probably one of the nicest employees I’ve ever had.”
Pietrobono added that Melendez always had a “smile on his face” and was a talented chef.
After Melendez’s death, the restaurant closed for several days to give the team time to grieve, the eatery said in a social media post. The restaurant reopened on July 15 and held a fundraiser on Wednesday to honor Melendez’s life and collect money for his family as they prepare to lay him to rest in his home country of El Salvador.
Melendez’s sister started a GoFundMe campaign in honor of her brother as well, aiming to raise $15,000 to transport his body to El Salvador and pay for funeral expenses. As of Monday, the campaign surpassed its goal, raising nearly $15,300.
The loss of their head chef, as well as other recent employee departures, also signaled to Pietrobono that it was time to “take a step back,” he said.
During the 10 years of running Alatri Bros., the restaurant navigated the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on the business. In June 2020, the two brothers spoke to Bethesda Magazine about the stress of the pandemic on their businesses and how they were handling the county’s reopening of restaurants, employee furloughs and government assistance.
In the last six years, the restaurant has seen a lot change, from rising costs for food and utilities to changes in consumer behavior with the proliferation of food delivery and less foot traffic during lunch hours, according to Pietrobono.
As a Bethesda resident, Pietrobono also said the area around the restaurant has changed. He said at night he has noticed less foot traffic and a quieter downtown area.
“If you walk around at night, it kind of dies a little early. It’s different than it used to be,” Pietrobono said.
This winter was also particularly difficult for business. Pietrobono said that the late January winter storm that left about a foot of snow and ice plastered to the ground for weeks hit business hard. The “snowcrete” not only slowed foot traffic and food orders but also destroyed the restaurant’s outdoor awning.
“I think almost every restaurant that I know of lost a lot of money [this winter]. So, to regroup out of that is really tough to do,” Pietrobono said. “It was a tough time.”
More restaurants are struggling financially than one may expect, Pietrobono said. They may be doing so silently. Pointing to the abrupt closure of Woodmont Grill in October, Pietrobono said “that should be maybe a wake-up call. Support your local restaurants if you like them.”
Pietrobono said he had no regrets with Alatri Bros. He noted that in the restaurant business, 10 years is considered a “good run.” “I can look back at it and say it was a great place,” Pietrobono said. “I think that now a lot of people are recognizing that.”
