Last Night at Vernetti – Huge Success!

Thanks to the generosity of Joanna and Steve Vernetti and local residents, “Last Night at Vernetti” raised nearly $5,000 toward the completion of the bistro lights on Larchmont Blvd.

On Thursday evening, nearly 60 patrons gathered at long tables in front of Vernetti restaurant for one last dinner to celebrate the Vernettis, who raised the bar for dining on Larchmont Blvd. In April, Steve Vernetti announced he was closing the restaurant after nearly ten years on Larchmont. As a final act of generosity and community, Vernetti agreed to offer a last night as a fundraiser to continue the next phase of the bistro light project, installing lights in the city parking lot for events such as a night market, summer movie nights and more.

“The last night at Vernetti was really a community celebration,” Heather Duffy Boylston, Executive Director of Larchmont Village Business Improvement District (BID), told the Buzz. “When Steve and Joanna opened nearly ten years ago it was a transition time on Larchmont, going from small mom and pops to more upscale businesses. Joanna and Steve really set the tone for how to embrace the future, while staying true to our Larchmont Village roots.”

“Thank you for all the memories we have created at Vernetti, it’s just been amazing,” Boylston said last night when she presented a commendation certificate from CD 13 City Councilmember Hugo Soto-Martinez.

“It was great to see so many members of the community show their appreciation for a couple who gave so much the street,” Windsor Square resident Gary Gilbert told the Buzz.

Windsor Square resident Susan Kneafsey spoke for many when she said she will miss Vernetti’s giant dish of spaghetti and meatballs, a perfect cure for a tough day. She also praised the Vernetti waitstaff, who know everyone’s name and their favorite dishes. 

Steve Vernetti thanked everyone for supporting the restaurant and his staff, many of whom have been with the Vernettis since they opened. 

“I have to thank all of you for making this place work, because without all of us working with them, and them working for me, none of this would have happened,” Vernetti said. 

As they prepare to turn the keys over to Terroni, which will take over the restaurant space, the Vernettis also announced they had applied for a permit to serve a full line of alcohol through the city’s recently modified Restaurant Beverage Program. Today, Steve Vernetti confirmed, the approval came through and will soon be uploaded to the online portal.

As an organizer of last night’s event and active participant in the Larchmont placemaking efforts, we’d like to thank everyone who bought tickets and made donations to support the event, including the following: Dennis and Dia Kim, Michael Goldberg, Judie and Ken Jaffe, Kiel Fitzgerald and Jeff, Susan and Sean Kneafsey, Judy and Gary Gilbert, Romi Cortier and Recio Young; Patricia Carroll, Katharine DeShaw, Diana Buckhantz, Thomas Kneafsey, Melissa Farwell, Edie Frére, Sharon Sweeney, Jeffrey Barry, Carolyn Ramsay and Andy Goodman, Amy and Brendan Malloy, Angeline Szentgyorgyi, Daniel and Zoe Corwin, Jennifer Levin and John Eisendrath, Abby Wolf-Weiss and Daniel Weiss, Jennifer DeVore, Doreen Braverman, Diana Knox, Betsy Malloy, Paulette Light and Jeff Rake, Scott Sale, Isabel Beers, Emily Simon and Dan Alanis, Ilene Rosenzweig and Rick Marin, Frances Hoge, Nancy Baron, Suzanne Rosenblatt, Natalie Seaver, and Terroni Restaurant. (If we left anyone out please email us, so we can thank you properly!)

The Larchmont Bistro Lights project is a joint effort of the Larchmont Village BID and the Larchmont Boulevard Association. Thanks to the generous donations of the following donors who contributed to the first phase of the project and got first set of lights installed along the Boulevard: American Commerical Properties, Wayne Hughes/Marvin Lotts; ARBA Group; City Council District 13 (under former City Councilmember Mitch O’Farrell), Christina Development; Arash Danialfar; Hancock Park Homeowners Association; Thomas Kneafsey; the Larchmont Buzz; Meyer/Blumenthal Family; Mick McCullough; Mizrahi Family; Muto-Little Costume; the Rubinfeld Family; Simms Development Company; Wilshire Rotary; and the Windsor Square Association.