La Fenice Gelato Takes Shape on Main Street
The former Lucky Brand Jeans shop has taken shape as Westport’s newest Italian gelateria, La Fenice. The shop was awaiting the import of a speciality gelato display case from Italy, but has quickly revamped the former clothing store in preparation for their opening - including the installation of PepsiCo’s new Hello Goodness machines, shown left.
Manna Toast Receives DoorDash Relief Funds
The Hartford Courant reports that Westport’s Manna Toast was awarded DoorDash Relief Funds through their COVID-19 grant program this month. The program assisted 91 other Connecticut restaurants in keeping their doors open when social distancing and winter temperatures hinder their ability to seat customers.
92 struggling Connecticut restaurants to receive DoorDash relief funds
By Kaitlin McCallum From the Hartford Courant, 03/11/21Ninety-two Connecticut restaurants, from a handful of Subways to Hartford’s Black-Eyed Sally’s and the North House in Avon, will receive $5,000 grants through the Connecticut Restaurant Relief Fund to help restaurants keep their doors open during the coronavirus pandemic. The funds, through DoorDash’s Main Street Strong effort, can be used to cover covid-related expenses like PPE and expansion of outdoor dining, as well as operating costs like rent and payroll.
“The restaurant industry has been hit so hard over the past year, and it’s critical we save as many local restaurants as possible so they can be part of Connecticut’s post-COVID economic recovery,” said Scott Dolch, executive director of the Connecticut Restaurant Association in a release Thursday.
In January, DoorDash, which delivers food from nearly 700 restaurants in the Hartford area, announced a $500,000 donation to the fund, and the Connecticut Restaurant Association later called for private and corporate donations to meet the overwhelming need.
Just three days after the fund began taking applications, more than 570 restaurants had applied.
“I would love to give out grants to everyone that’s eligible, and for that we’d need $5 million, not half a million,” Dolch said at the time.
Dolch said checks will be sent to the restaurants next week, “exactly one year from the state-mandated shutdown of in-person dining,” that began a wave of layoffs and restaurant closures.
Though Gov. Ned Lamont last week lifted the capacity restrictions on indoor dining, the 6-foot social distancing requirement means many smaller places will remain limited. More than 100 restaurants that didn’t officially close are in hibernation until warm weather returns and the vaccine rollout boosts consumer confidence. An 11 p.m. curfew that remains in place has also taken a toll.
According to the CRA release, the restaurants selected to receive the grant are spread across the state and are among Connecticut’s hardest hit.
All Gone: Former Klein’s Storefront Demolished
Amidst renovations to the upper Main Street area, the former Klein’s Department store, and most recently the shuttered Banana Republic, has been nearly demolished. The building’s original facade and sign was exposed for over a month while work progressed on the project.
Westport Wash & Wax, No More: New Signs Complete Transition
Splash Car Wash has claimed their newest signage on Post Road East as the former Westport Wash & Wax signs were taken down this week for the brand’s blue and yellow insignia. The locally-owned predecessor was founded by the Tiefenthaler family in 1999 and was a Westport institution until its sale in November 2020.