By John Ostapowicz
NEW CASTLE, Pa. – Family is one of life’s most important connections. For three New Castle, Pa., brothers, it’s also the cornerstone of a long-standing business.
The Faraone Brothers is owned and operated by brothers Freddie, Bob and Anthony Faraone. What started as a stand-alone DJ service in 1990 quickly expanded beyond its original roots, adding various entrepreneurial ventures throughout the years including a full-service catering operation, banquet hall, express carry out and a restaurant.
Each of the company’s ventures are built on the idea of hospitality – a principle that has been passed down through generations of the family. The core values – and the menu – for Faraone Brothers Catering derives from the brothers’ late grandmother, Luisa Faraone, who immigrated from Italy to the United States in 1929.
Freddie Faraone said catering is more than serving food; it’s about giving back to the community and putting heart into what they do.
“The biggest thing that [Luisa] taught us was hospitality and just making sure everybody was fed,” Freddie says. “You’re taking care of people or you make sure everybody’s fed, you have a good drink, good food and make sure that they’re welcome and relaxed in any atmosphere, whether it’s catering or a restaurant.”
From pasta with red sauce and meatballs to chicken piccata, the recipes, dishes and the idea to start a restaurant and catering business were all inspired by their grandmother’s love for cooking.
“Our late grandmother inspired us to start a restaurant and catering with her recipes that she brought over from Italy,” Freddie says. “ We use a lot of her stuff – sauce, meatballs [and] eggplant – in our menu.”
Freddie also owns Riardo’s Bar & Grill on East Washington Street. All of the food for the restaurant is made daily in the Faraone Brothers’ kitchen on South Mill Street and delivered to Riardo’s – a roughly 2-mile drive.
The brothers also drew inspiration from their Polish heritage when adding different items to the menu.
“Grandma’s Polish and Italian, so we do both,” Anthony says. “We do the haluski and the kielbasa and the pierogies.”
Different Roles
Being a family-operated business does not change the responsibilities of running a company. Within Faraone Brothers, each brother holds a distinct role – Freddie serves as CEO, Anthony as CFO and Bob as the managing partner.
Although each brother holds an executive role, they all share responsibilities when it comes to helping prepare for orders, events and catering setup.
Freddie is tasked with marketing and employee training. Anthony handles head counts and event preparation, where his main task is to ensure the catering staff is prepared for the exact number of guests. Bob oversees the setup for food and beverage, which includes the oversight of alcohol service for weddings, golf outings and other events.
Although each brother has his own separate duties, Freddie Faraone says the trio works together in the kitchen on busy weekends to help the staff and prepare for events where the amount of people to prepare for changes quickly.
“We all cook and we all serve on weekends when it’s crunch time,” Freddie says.
During the busy season from May through October, there are times where the brothers do multiple jobs at once. Because the business offers different services, it requires the brothers to be in different places at one time.
“Sometimes we’re so busy, we have three weddings going on – and we all DJ also. So at the same event, all three of us can be DJing, catering and have the bar,” Bob says.
New Venture
The brothers’ newest venture is Faraone Brothers Express – a takeout business based in the South Mill Street location. It offers a smaller menu that is mostly salads, sandwiches and pepperoni rolls. Customers can stop by or order via DoorDash.
Faraone Brothers Express is open Monday through Friday from 10:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.
“We’re here every day prepping from 9:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. and we were like, ‘Hey, why don’t we make some extra income in the small little room we have up front?’” Freddie says, explaining how the Express got started.
A significant part of the Faraone Brothers income is derived through Riardo’s liquor license. In Pennsylvania, restaurants with an Off-Premises Catering Permit from the liquor control board are allowed to provide alcoholic beverages at catered events.
For weddings held in Ohio, the bride and groom purchase the alcohol through the Faraone Brothers in advance, which is then incorporated into the catering service.
The Faraone Brothers location on Mill Street includes a banquet room that seats 50. It is an intimate space for bereavement dinners, baby showers, bridal showers and other events.
Anthony says the Covid-19 pandemic caused a decline in the guest count at weddings, but the number is rising.
“They’re starting to go back up,” Anthony says. The typical guest count had been in the one-hundreds, but the number is now getting above 200.
The brothers grew their business by showing extra attention to each customer, Freddie says.
“If somebody orders something, always give them 10% more,” he says. “If somebody orders a wedding, my brother will throw in a couple extra beers for them at the bar, I’ll throw them some extra lighting above the cookie table. Little things like that, people just really appreciate.”
The Faraone brothers plan to launch a studio where they will make training videos to help other catering entrepreneurs.
“I want to let [entrepreneurs] know that you can run a restaurant with heart, run a restaurant with guts – and you don’t have to be a mean boss,” Freddie says. “I hate the word boss. I always tell people, ‘be a leader’.”
For a complete list of all services offered by Faraone Brothers Catering, go to faraonebrothers.com. For more information on Riardo’s Bar & Grill, go to riardos.com.
Pictured at top: Bob, Anthony and Freddie Faraone have owned and operated the Faraone Brothers for over 30 years.
