After death of Dorchester restaurant owner, staff raises money

When Blasi’s Kitchen and Bar, a longtime Adams Village staple, burned down in 2017, it would take a larger-than-life dreamer to build it back up. Despite delays, mostly due to a pandemic in between, co-owner and proprietor Kenneth “Kenny” Blasi accomplished his goal. 

In 2023, the Italian deli and bar reopened, bringing back many of its employees and regulars, some of whom have been part of the Blasi restaurant family since its original opening in 2000. 

For a year, Blasi saw his dream become a reality: running a restaurant that has long been a neighborhood favorite. 

“Kenny worked so hard to reopen this place,” said Erin Joyce, a waiter at Blasi’s Kitchen and Bar. “He was determined to do it, and he did it. People didn’t think he could do it.”

Blasi died on July 24, suddenly, from a heart attack. He left behind his wife, Maria, three sons, a daughter, lifelong friends, and a staff who viewed him as more than just a boss. 

His funeral was held Tuesday at Gate of Heaven Church in South Boston. In attendance were many former or present employees, like Blasi’s bartender Billy Clougher.

“He had that larger-than-life personality — you could see that in the way he was eulogized,” Clougher said. “The biggest thing was the turnout. When we left the funeral, I didn’t realize how many people were there until we turned around and filed out. That church was full.”

On a phone call Friday, Clougher, Joyce, and lifelong friend Eddie Spacco said Blasi’s death was a devastating shock. 

Clougher said he had just returned from a trip, one that Blasi said he couldn’t wait to hear about. It was a crushing blow to Clougher the moment he realized he’d never have that catch-up with Blasi.

Blasi’s close relationship with his staff and the neighborhood was what made him — and equally, his restaurant — so beloved and granted him a staff loyalty that’s rare in the restaurant business.

Joyce, who started at Blasi’s in 2001, said Blasi was usually the first face customers would see when walking in, or often making Italian subs at the Fat Belly Deli inside the restaurant.

“He brought the neighborhood back together when he reopened the place,” Joyce said. “It’s been a staple on Adams Corner for forever, but now this is the place to be. Everyone comes here, and everyone knows each other’s names.”

He jointly ran the restaurant with his wife, Maria, with whom he raised four kids. Family, even over the restaurant, was his life, Spacco said. 

If Blasi wasn’t at the restaurant, he was at a ball game or a dance recital for his children. 

Adams Village of Dorchester has seen a lot of new restaurants come and go over the last several years, but the Blasi family has had a presence in this busy stretch of Boston’s biggest neighborhood since the 1950s. Before it was a restaurant, it was a hardware store owned by Blasi’s late father. 

Many longtime residents have known Blasi since he was a kid in that old hardware store, Spacco said.

“They watched Kenny grow up right before their eyes, so to see him pass, it was hard for a lot of [our regulars],” said Spacco, who grew up with Kenny in Adams Village. 

The community has since come out in support of the family and the restaurant in the week since Blasi’s passing, Spacco said. Neighboring restaurants like Landmark Public House, held a raffle to raise money for the Blasi family.

His staff is doing the same with a GoFundMe created by Joyce. They’re raising money to support his wife and children. With more than 800 donations, the fund exceeded its goal of $100,000. 

“We’ve become a family in the past 24 years,” Joyce said. “Now we’re just doing everything we can to keep Kenny’s dream alive.