Coronavirus Update: Restaurant Owners Creating Take-Home Kits, Offering Online Classes To Comfort Customers
ROBBINSVILLE TOWNSHIP, N.J. (CBSNewYork) -- Local restaurant owners are coming up with creative ways for customers to find comfort in the kitchen.
For so many of us, food is one of the main ingredients keeping us sane right now.
The second, as Salvatore Mazzella puts it, "Family first, that's what we always say here."
Mazzella owns Massimo's Restaurant in Robbinsville Township, New Jersey, where they're offering families a way to bring both things together in the form of do-it-yourself take home pizza kits.
"When we were little, with our father, we would always make pizzas with him. Then we did it with our own children. Bringing that to other people's families, bringing it to their homes and creating memories was very important to us," Mazzella told CBS2's Kiran Dhillon.
For just $10 each, the kit includes everything you'll need to make a professional pizza at home.
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There's a similar idea at Bubbakoo's Burritos, where customers can buy taco kits.
Owner Paul Altero says his 32 locations across the country are now selling do-it-yourself taco kits.
"It's a way for families to engage, to have fun, to make their own food," Altero said.
Altero adds the kits are also a way to keep staff employed during these trying times.
"The business has been impacted tremendously. We're definitely down about 50 percent," he said.
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The do-it-yourself kits are great for people who are looking for an easy meal, but if you want to try a recipe that's a bit more complex, some local chefs are making that possible, too.
Fortina Pizza's head chef Christian Petroni is offering free cooking classes online. Each week, the restaurant dishes out an ingredient list. A day later, followers can watch along as he makes magic.
"There's so many people out there that are sad, scared, stressed out, and so you look at yourself and you say, OK, what do I have to offer? What can I give?" Petroni said.
While the pain that's come from the coronavirus will hopefully pass, these entrepreneurs say their hope is to continue these new fulfilling traditions.