He was my pal and I hope he thought of me in the same way.  On Friday, our neighbor and customer, Mr. Cardillo, passed away.  I met Mr. Cardillo about 15 years ago when I was trying to open tazza doro.  A few neighbors were opposed to a coffee shop opening on Highland Ave and he was one of them…but he was sitting on the fence, so to speak, waiting to hear more about my plan.  Through the 2 year process of zoning hearings, community meetings and community building Mr Cardillo became a supporter and customer.  We became friends!

We spent many days sharing an espresso, a sfogliatelle, and stories about being Italian, the “old country”, planting and growing a garden.  I think Mr Cardillo only met my mom once or twice but there wasn’t a time he didn’t ask “how’s mama?”  I came to realize one day he asked out of shear respect…respect for me and what my mom means to me!

As most of you know, I tend to wear cycling caps while I’m working.  On this particular day I had a new one on, Cinelli, maker of Italian bikes.  Mr Cardillo really liked the cap and I gave it to him.  Really glad I took this picture of him sitting at the shop wearing the Cinelli cap!

Arrivederci paisano!