With residents in the coastal areas of Virginia, North Carolina and South Carolina evacuating their homes and fleeing Hurricane Florence, a Neapolitan pizzeria in Atlanta is offering a helping hand—in the form of an affordable meal.
Hurricane Florence will be “a storm that creates and causes massive damage to our country,” a Federal Emergency Management Agency official said earlier today. More than 1 million people have been ordered to evacuate the area in its path.
Many will likely head west towards Georgia, and Amalfi Pizza plans to make them feel welcome. The company announced today that refugees from the storm can eat at the Atlanta restaurant, co-founded by master pizzaioli Greg Grant and Stephen de Haan, and pay whatever they can afford.
“Amalfi Pizza welcomes Hurricane Florence evacuees by inviting individuals and families to come and enjoy a meal for whatever they feel they can pay on the food portion of their bill (excludes alcoholic beverages),” the company announced in a press release. “This offer is valid to anyone in town from mandatory evacuation zones. Guests only need to ask for a manager and show a valid ID from one of the areas affected.”
“Our family here at Amalfi understands the struggles that our evacuee friends and families are experiencing,” de Haan said in the release. “It is our way of welcoming evacuees to our city and the Amalfi family with a warm meal to make them feel at home.”
Amalfi Pizza has been named “Best Pizza in America’s Biggest Cities” by the Food Network and a “must-try Atlanta pizzeria” by Zagat. Located in downtown Atlanta, it’s a traditional Neapolitan pizzeria centered around a pair of 6,000-pound wood-burning brick ovens imported from Italy.
The 170-seat dining room has large semicircular booths, custom wrought-iron chandeliers and Juliet balconies overlooking an Italian-inspired entryway. It features an authentic Italian menu that includes Neapolitan-style pizzas as well as original appetizers, fresh salads, pasta dishes and traditional desserts.
Grant and de Haan studied with the Italian pizzaiolo maestros at Pizzeria Mattozzi, established in 1830, and Pizzeria Da Attilo and underwent training from the Associazione Verace Pizza Napoletana (AVPN) prior to opening Amalfi in Atlanta.