Alfonso’s was born through Peter’s lifelong interest in food, his background in hospitality and his entrepreneurial spirit, Lori says. He started working for Hilton as a high school senior and continued his career with hotels until he arrived at the Anatole in Dallas and decided to open a restaurant.
Most of the immediate family worked at Alfonso’s over the years, Lori says. Their father also gave Peter some advice for the recipes — pick the restaurant with the best flavor, and then go to its dumpster to find out which brands are being used. Or at least watch to see which delivery trucks show up.
And that’s what Peter did. Some recipes originated from home, particularly the meat sauce and meatballs, but for the most part, they are his creations.
Like his father, generosity was a defining characteristic of Peter’s personality, Lori says.
“Peter was always offering if you need it, if you need his help, if you need something,” Lori says. “Later in the years when he moved out of state and I was on my own, I didn’t have money for rent. ‘Peter, I need rent.’ ‘Well, what do you need?’ And then next thing I know, there’s a check at my doorstep.”
And she wasn’t the only one to receive this treatment. He gave money to his high school-aged waitresses who needed homecoming dresses. He sent pizzas to hospitals. He donated money to Thailand after hearing about the mid-2000s tsunami.
But Peter wasn’t the gentle type, more like “hard on the outside but soft on the inside” personified.
“His voice sounded like he was from hardcore New York, but he wasn’t,” Lori says. “How he delivered his message was always harsh, but his heart was extremely warm.”
And when doing good deeds for Alfonso’s staffers, he didn’t want recognition, longtime employee Wendy Miller says.
Miller started working at the restaurant in 1986 as a Bryan Adams High School junior and stayed on for about 20 years while also pursuing her education career. As a boss, she says Peter made Alfonso’s fun.
“He would bring cookies or make food for the staff,” she says, in addition to staff outings. “He created a family environment up there.”
