ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — A south St. Pete staple is closed for good after 30 years of business. Portofino Italian Ristorante officially served its last meal in Bay Pointe Plaza last week.
The owners told 10 Tampa Bay they just couldn't overcome rising prices. Christopher and Patricia Conley took over Portofino six years ago from the original owners, jumping at the chance to live a dream.
“We used a lot of my family's recipes and my grandfather's recipes,” Patricia said. “The people, the employees, we're a big family.”
Like most restaurants, COVID-19 changed everything, and inflation ate away at their margins.
“People don't have the budget for coming out and all your prices are rising at the same time,” Christopher said. “But you can't raise [prices,] because then you'll have even fewer people coming out.”
They say they're closing now because they fell behind on rent payments and their landlord, Publix, which owns the shopping center, is threatening eviction.
"We're not running from that,” Patricia said. “We know we owe it, and we know we will eventually pay it one way or another.”
Longtime customers like Kacey Cleveland are upset with Publix. The Conleys say instead of waiving two months rent during the pandemic like it was announced in this press release, that rent was deferred until the end of their lease.
10 Tampa Bay has tried for days to get a response, but Publix hasn't replied to our requests.
“The owners of this restaurant, I consider them friends now,” Cleveland said. “I don't want for a locally started, Florida-owned landlord to be part of the problem. I feel like they should be part of the solution, and that bothers me.”
As wine is packed up and the remaining food is donated to food banks, what they can't pack up are the memories.
“Thank you for all the support over the years,” Christopher said. “Thank you for helping us get through COVID, through all the ups and downs for sticking with us.”
“The building is a building, but the people are what really make the restaurant,” added Patricia.
What happened to Portofino is similar across the country for many "mom and pop" restaurants.
The National Restaurant Association’s annual report shows 38 percent of restaurants weren't profitable last year. It adds that average food prices remain 25 percent higher than before the pandemic.