Last week, we posted that Osteria 166 was launching a new initiative that would allow people to stock their freezers with ready-to-go Italian meals. I pointed out that there was an online donation feature on the site; at the time, 168 meals had been donated to people in need.
Since that time, the community has come to the rescue. 6148 meals have now been donated, which is an astronomical number. I spoke to Evan Thompson, one of the delivery people who has been making the rounds, and he said that the response to the entire online meal delivery program has been nothing short of miraculous. Not only is Osteria 166 keeping 20 people employed, they are helping to feed a community, many of whom wouldn’t have access to this type of wholesome delicious food.
“Once I refresh the donation numbers on the site, it looks like we are inching up to 7 thousand donations,” said Osteria 166 owner Nick Pitillo. “These are meals that customers have purchased at a discounted price, and donated to people in need. My family plans on donating 2000 meals, when the need arises. It’s incredible to see people stepping up for this worthy cause. My niece just donated 100 meals. My old fraternity brothers who I have not heard from in years are donating… at this point, we’re cranking out the meals. We should be making 2000 donated meals by the end of the day. If we can make 1500 donated meals a day, ideally, we should be able to handle the demand. It looks as if we’re going to make those daily goals.”