[StBernard] Rocky and Carlo's rebuilds after fire, reopens Tuesday

[Westley Annis]

Rocky and Carlo's rebuilds after fire, reopens Tuesday

Published: Wednesday, May 23, 2012, 12:39 PM     Updated: Wednesday, May 23,
2012, 12:58 PM

 By Susan Langenhennig, The Times-Picayune 

"It's just like it was. It's the same way we've served people, and the same
way we've loved people since we opened in 1965."

That's Tommy Tommaseo's succinct assessment of what patrons will find when
his family's Rocky and Carlo's restaurant reopens its doors Tuesday (May 29)
at 11, just in time for lunch service.

The beloved St. Bernard Parish home of baked macaroni and cheese and "wop
salad" has been rebuilt from the ground up, for the second time in six
years. The phoenix-like eatery caught fire in February, causing more than
$225,000 worth of damage.

After the initial shock - and gratitude that no one was hurt -  the business
of rebuilding became all too familiar. The restaurant flooded with four feet
of water in the levee failures following Hurricane Katrina. It reopened
after that disaster in February 2007.

The new building, at the same location, 613 W. St. Bernard Highway, is just
like its post-K predecessor: the same cabinets, the same color Formica. The
wall murals by Luis Colmenares, depicting mega plates of macaroni and
cheese, baked chicken and artichokes, are similar to the pre-fire versions,
just a little bigger.

The A/C duct work is different. It's dark green instead of light green.

"Nothing on the menu has changed," said Tommaseo, who runs the day-to-day
operation with a wide range of close-knit relatives. "We want to get back up
and running and make sure we still got it."

Tommaseo's family has been serving its poboys and Sicilian specialties --
veal parmigiana, braciola, veal cutlets -- for so long, there's little doubt
they've got it down to muscle memory. 

Its famous baked macaroni, made with long perciatelli pasta tubes and
typically dosed with brown or red gravy, could qualify as one of St. Bernard
Parish's biggest tourist attractions.

Tommaseo's father, Rocky Tommaseo, and his uncle, Thomas Tommaseo, founded
the restaurant. Tommy Tommaseo's 86-year-old aunt, Leonarda "Nana" Gioe, and
his 76-year-old uncle, Thomas Tommaseo, will be back in the kitchen on
Tuesday, just as they have been for four decades. "Where else would they
be?" Tommy said.

Even before fires and floods, Rocky and Carlo's had withstood disaster.
Hurricane Betsy hit the year the business opened. The family kept on
serving, even as the winds howled outside.

"Nothing is going to keep us down," Tommaseo said, "that's for sure."

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