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Chef-owner of Maldini's Marcello Armetta
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Maldini's celebrates Christmas with an annual dinner to feed those in need.
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Maldini's is located at 4811 Forest Hill Ave.
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A sign calling for volunteers to help bring guests to the Christmas celebration; see the bottom of our article for more information.
At 16 years old, a determined Marcello Armetta sold his scooter and told his family he was leaving Sicily to move to America and open his own restaurant.
Twenty-two years later, not only is Armetta a restaurant owner and chef at Maldini's Ristorante Italiano in Richmond's South Side, he also opens his doors each Christmas to feed neighbors who need it most.
“It’s nice for them to have a hot meal and be treated like a human being,” says Armetta of those who benefit from this annual holiday event.
For the past five years Armetta has hosted families and individuals at the almost 15-year-old Italian eatery located at 4811 Forest Hill Ave. What began as a lesson to teach his children what the holidays are truly about has become a Christmas tradition.
“If you ask a small child why we celebrate, they say Santa Claus and toys; they don’t know exactly what it is,” says Armetta. “I want to teach them how lucky they are. We have a roof over our head, and food is not a problem — a lot of people don’t even have that.”
Christmas mornings start early for Armetta inside the kitchen. He arrives at Maldini’s before 6 a.m. to prep for the feast later that evening, working until he receives a call from his wife, Rhenda, that his children are awake. He then returns home to open gifts with his family. Afterward, his sons, Antonio and Alessandro, 11 and 7, daughter Viviana, 3, and Rhenda all return to Maldini’s.
“The whole family is involved,” says Armetta.
Beginning at noon, the doors of Maldini’s open, welcoming community members in need to have a hot meal on a holiday meant to be enjoyed with others.
“It’s for somebody that needs food or is homeless or struggling to make it through the month; they can come here and eat with us,” says Armetta. He says the response to the dinner the first year was tremendous, and the spirit of the holidays quickly began to catch on with customers and employees as well.
Many of Maldini’s customers are regulars — Armetta knows their families, their children’s birthdays, and maintains a close relationship. One day in passing Armetta mentioned that he wished they could serve more people for Christmas but knew that transportation and physically getting to Maldini’s presented difficulties. His customers stepped up, and since then, each year a group of Maldini’s regulars and employees volunteer to pick up community members and bring them to the restaurant. They also collect gloves, hats and socks to give to those in need.
Upon arrival guests are welcomed to dine and indulge, the bar transformed into a spread of meats — a 35-pound whole swordfish and lamb cut to order — along with chicken, lentil soup and plenty of pasta.
“I’m Italian. It can’t be a holiday without pasta,” says Armetta, laughing.
Over the years the attendance has varied, the highest being 120 people but typically averaging 75, a mix of both men and women. Armetta says the majority of people who come are older, and oftentimes alone, although there have been families and single moms.
“They are happy to be here, and it's a very good atmosphere, not sad at all,” says Armetta, who hopes to continue doing this annually with his family by his side.
“There’s always somebody worse [off] than us, and [I want my kids] to understand that there are two sides to this life: One day you can have everything and the next nothing.”
Maldini's annual Christmas dinner begins at noon and lasts until 4 p.m. on Tuesday, Dec. 25. The restaurant asks that readers help to spread the word to community members who may be in need. For those interested in volunteering, please contact Armetta via email or call the restaurant at 804-230-9055.
