Eat supper, save a restaurant?

Have you received the email blast about Sapori Ristorante Italiano in Greenville? (Photo to the left, taken by Jennifer Corbett, is the eatery's pappardelle Stagionali.)

Several people have forwarded to me the version listed below that is making the rounds in an effort to help save an apparently struggling restaurant.

Taste is subjective - and I haven't dined at Sapori - but other trusted eaters have. Unlike the email below, no one I know has called it "one of the finest Italian restaurants in Delaware."

I checked out our archives and in a Nov. 2007 review of Sapori, my fellow News Journal restaurant critic Eric Ruth wrote: "The menu of mostly familiar Italian classics tries to lean toward more upscale sensibilities, and while it succeeds well with the well-crafted appetizers, it falters disappointingly when the uninspired entrees arrive."

He gave it two stars out of four. (That's back when we were still handing out stars.) Perhaps, things have changed since this review. Judge for yourself.

Here's the email:

Hi, all. The economic crisis is about to take down one of the finest Italian restaurants in Delaware. And I'd like to ask you to consider having lunch or dinner there in the next week or so, to help stave off their possible shut-down.

Sapori Ristorante Italiano -- located where Amalfi's used to be, in the Greenville Shopping Center -- is run by an Italian-born couple in their 50s. He worked as a chef for years, and finally opened his own restaurant two years ago.

The food at Sapori is simply fabulous -- from arugula salads to zuppas, and every kind of meat, fish and poultry in between. Last Thursday night, the owner told us that business has been so slow -- between the sagging economy, the post-Christmas slowdown and the frigid weather -- that he may have to close his doors next month. That would be a terrible loss for him and his family, of course, but also for our community.

If the owners can hold on for a few more months, Spring will be here, and the economy might well pick up. People will also start leaving their "winter hibernation" at home to socialize more. So there's hope . . . if he can make it to Spring.

So I'd like to ask you to consider making an effort to help save a local business! In the next week or 10 days, please dine out at Sapori! Their address is 3801 Kennett Pike, and their front door is located in the little parking zone where Talbots is. [They face Talbots, and are located to the left of Yves Delorme]. Their phone number is 654 - 9501.

It would be a shame to see a first-class restaurant go under, and to see a couple's lifetime dream explode, just because they lacked patrons during a tough time. So if you would like to enjoy a night out while having a great dining experience, please call Sapori! (FYI, I'm told that "sapori" means "flavors" in Italian.) Molto grazie!