Rocco's Donates Free Meals To Hospitals: Coronavirus

WALNUT CREEK, CA — There are currently dozens of patients suffering from COVID-19, the illness caused by the new coronavirus, hospitalized in Contra Costa County, according to today's statistics released by Contra Costa Health Services.

And during this pandemic, many people are asking how they can help. Rocco's Ristorante Pizzeria is pitching in by providing free meals for workers at Walnut Creek's two hospitals, John Muir and Kaiser Permanente.

Owner Rocco Biale is paying for the food out of his own pocket, while depending on the kindness of customers to deliver it to the hospitals.

An online sign-up sheet for the month of April is completely filled-in — there are so many volunteers that there are no spots available.

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Rocco's is doing a booming take-out business during the shelter-in-place order, allowing him to keep 30 workers employed, Biale told the Pioneer newspaper. So he cooked up the idea of paying it forward to health care workers.

In a video interview posted on Rocco's Facebook page, Biale said, "We decided that the emergency room technicians or the people working in ICU, working long shifts, 8-10-12 hour shifts, need to be fed. And in some small way this is our way of contributing — to feeding these people who are literally putting their lives on the line."

Biale already had a take-out business when the shelter-in-place order was issued, so his customers naturally think of Rocco's when they need a break from home cooking. But for other local restaurants trying to switch from dine-in to take-out or delivery, staying afloat is tougher.

Patch has put together a resource for Walnut Creek businesses and their customers. Please access this free directory to see other businesses that are trying to survive hard times. And business owners, add your information for free.

The family owned and operated Rocco's, "Family owned and argued over since 1999," is at 2909 Ygnacio Valley Rd., Walnut Creek.

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