PROVIDENCE – Citing COVID-19-related hardships, Siena Restaurant Group has announced that its Federal Hill location has been shuttered permanently.
The East Greenwich and Smithfield locations will continue operating.
Diversity matters at Amgen
We believe our differences lead to better science and better business outcomes, enabling us to…
Learn More
The group of Italian restaurants, which specializes in Tuscan cuisine, opened the Providence location on Atwells Avenue about 17 years ago, according to Siena. It was the first of the three Siena restaurants.
The restaurant group has faced many of the challenges plaguing restaurants throughout the country, such as increased expenses, supply chain issues, difficulties hiring and retaining staff, and fewer customers, Siena said in a statement.
“This, in no way, was an easy decision – Providence is where it all began for Siena, and I hope one day there is an opportunity to return,” said Anthony Tarro, owner and president of Siena. “We absolutely tried our best to reopen Providence, but in the end it was not feasible. And although painful, it is a necessary transition to growing Siena again in the future.”
The East Greenwich and Smithfield locations will remain open and “are continuing to thrive,” Tarro said.
The East Greenwich location recently expanded, according to the restaurant, and now has an events space. All Siena gift certificates will be accepted at both remaining locations.
Tarro previously spoke of the restaurant’s difficulty with hiring last spring. He told PBN that an inability to find workers prevented the restaurant group from reopening the Providence location after it closed in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic in spring 2020.
Compared with the East Greenwich and Smithfield restaurants, the Providence location also did little takeout business, according to Tarro, who noted an absence of theatergoers and once-regular customers such as from nearby state offices.
Jacquelyn Voghel is a PBN staff writer. Contact her at Voghel@PBN.com.
