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Avanti Restaurant, a popular Italian Restaurant at 34 River Road in Meriden, will close its doors for good after service on Thursday, Oct. 31, after 17 years in business. The owners — brothers Dominic and Joe Futia — announced their decision last month because they wanted to give customers time to use their gift cards or order their favorite item on the menu before it's too late.
Well, fans took them up on the offer.
Earlier this week, Avanti posted on Facebook that the restaurant has been slammed with customers recently looking for one more chicken scarpariello, pizza, or stuffed shrimp.
The Futia brothers have also pared down the menu considerably as they prepare to close. The new consolidated menu will appear as a pop-up on Avanti's website.
Click here to see that menu. The restaurant is open from 3 p.m. until 9:30 p.m.
Avanti's latest Facebook post is filled with hundreds of likes and scores of comments thanking the owners for being part of the community.
"I love your restaurant. I'm going to miss it," one woman wrote. "Everything was great about it. The food, the prices, the service, the staff, the ambiance, and more. I never had a bad meal or experience. ..."
"We’re so sad," another woman posted. "We eat here almost every Friday! The staff is great and so is the food. I hope you eventually decide to open somewhere else. Best of luck to all of you!!!"
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