Capriotti, the Italian sandwich shop where the famous Capriotto is made, has been sold.
The store, which was opened by the late Capriuto di Siena’s founder Giuseppe Capriotta in 1952, will be closing to the public on March 31, and the company said the closure was due to “financial difficulties.”
The restaurant, located in downtown Manhattan’s Chinatown neighborhood, has long been popular with Chinese tourists, and was one of the first restaurants in the United States to offer Chinese food.
Caprioti’s restaurant has been in business for more than 100 years, and it has been a longtime staple of the Chinese community.
The news comes amid a surge of Chinese tourists visiting the United Kingdom, the United Arab Emirates, Italy and other European countries, many of whom want to try out the restaurant’s menu, according to The Wall Street Journal.
The move to sell is a sign of how the Chinese diaspora has grown in recent years, said Andrew Le, a Chinese American and a board member at the Chinese Cultural Center, a nonprofit group based in the Bronx.
“We’re seeing a new wave of Chinese American immigrants, and this is a new, vibrant restaurant community,” Le said.
Capricello’s, which opened in 1955, has served its customers for more 100 years.
The restaurant’s restaurant menu features classic Italian dishes, including Capriotsi, Capriottinis, Capricotas, Caprio di Sieta, Caprottinis, and Capriattos.
The Capriotis have been a favorite of Chinese Americans in New York, and have become popular with tourists who come to New York City to shop for Chinese-made products.
“The Caprios are known for their Capriatto, which is a traditional Chinese sandwich that is basically a small piece of bread,” said Andrea J. Li, director of the National Chinese American Historical Association.
“So the restaurant was known for the Capriatos.”
The Capriceots menu is not as diverse as some other restaurants in Manhattan.
It’s often limited to a small portion of Chinese-American menu items such as Capriatta di Siano, a traditional Italian dish that includes shrimp, pork belly and capers.
In the past, Chinese American restaurant owners have used the name “Capricello” to honor their owners, and that’s how the restaurant is referred to.
Capricotti’s closed its last restaurant in New Jersey, after the state passed a law that prohibited Chinese Americans from owning or operating a restaurant.
The law was enacted to protect Chinese American businesses, and also to protect the business of the New Jersey chapter of the NAACP, which opposes the law.