In Memory: Tony LaRocco, 59, Owner of Fratelli di Napoli Restaurants

Editor’s note: the following obituary was submitted by Northside Chapel Funeral Directors & Crematory.

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Anthony “Tony” LaRocco, 59, passed away Sept. 20, surrounded by family and friends, nine years after his doctors predicted because of a stem cell transplant doctors called a “Hail Mary” play.

That fighting spirit and his generous heart made Tony a beloved husband, father, brother, son, and friend. Best known in Atlanta for his Fratelli di Napoli restaurants in Buckhead and Roswell, Tony’s entrepreneurial pursuits included opening restaurants in South Carolina and Florida and developing a reservation software platform for the industry.

Born in the Bronx, NY, Tony spent his childhood in Yorktown Heights located in Westchester County. He was a wrestler and lacrosse player at Kennedy Catholic High School where his teacher encouraged him to study history at college. A graduate of the University of South Florida, Tony was extremely active in campus life as president of Phi Delta Theta Chapter, he continued to play lacrosse and participated in international rugby tournaments.

His first restaurant was Antonio’s on Hilton Head Island, SC and he is credited for bringing the now-popular family-style dining concept to Atlanta in 1995 with the opening of Fratelli di Napoli on Bennett Street. It was an immediate success and garnered numerous “Best Of” awards and accolades, especially for his signature dish rigatoni a la vodka. He later opened LaRocco’s in Destin, FL and, after he miraculously survived his first bout with leukemia (ALL), he opened Vita, Italian for “life,” in Buckhead.

Tony’s life will forever be defined by his giving spirit. He organized numerous fundraisers like the Italian Open golf tournament benefitting Project Open Hand and always took the opportunity to stop by Emory to inspire and encourage those fighting cancer. He was always the first to organize assistance when it was needed, whether taking donations for an injured fireman through one of his restaurants or spearheading an annual Thanksgiving dinner cooking for hundreds of Atlanta’s homeless.

Friendship was very important to Tony and he was fiercely loyal to his friends throughout his life, 150 of which showed up at his hospital bed to say goodbye. Tributes continue to flood in on his Facebook page, remembering the support, laughs, and fun for which he could be counted on.

He will be greatly missed by his wife Suzy, daughters Alex and Sofia, and son TJ of Atlanta, and his father Anthony, sisters Jeanne, Barbara and Patricia La Rocco, Gail Ryder and Mary Dove of New York and several nieces and nephews and hundreds of cousins.

The “Celebration of Life” honoring and celebrating the wonderful “Larger than Life” Tony LaRocco, Saturday Oct. 3, 2015 at 5 p.m. at F&B Restaurant - 3630 Peachtree Road NE 30326 (f&batl.com).

In New York, on Oct. 17, a memorial mass will be held at 11:30 a.m. at St. Joseph’s Catholic Church in Somers, NY followed by a reception at PJ’s Restaurant in Baldwin Place, NY (pjsrestaurantny.com).

Memorial contributions are welcome at www.gofundme.com/jp2ww4h4.

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