The sauce has dried up at this iconic red-sauce spot.
Ferdinando’s Focacceria in Carroll Gardens abruptly closed its doors last weekend after 121 years of serving up Sicilian classics like rice balls and panelle sandwiches — with little notice it’d be mangia mangia no more.
Owner Frank Buffa said his age and physical woes were behind the decision to call it a day — even as he holds out hope the iconic eatery will have a second life after his own arrivederci.
“I can’t stand for 12 hours a day like I used to,” said Buffa, 75, adding he didn’t have a direct family heir to take the reins.
The Italian kitchen also never fully recovered from the effects of the coronavirus pandemic, which permanently shifted customers’ dining habits to eating out less and hurt Ferdinando’s bottom line, he said.
After a recent month-long break from overseeing the restaurant due to back problems, Buffa said he finally made up his mind to retire over the weekend.
“I’m the type of guy … who’s gotta be [here] all the time,” said Buffa, who also owns the building. “I don’t really want to give it to nobody else [because] this is my life.”
Sicily-born Buffa emigrated to the Big Apple in 1971 and took over Ferdinando’s after the death of his wife’s father in 1975 – and he “never took a sick day” in the 52 years since, he told The Post.
Locals paid their respects to the century-old outpost Monday afternoon, hugging and kissing Buffa and reflecting on decades of memories held within the four walls of the old-world restaurant. The spot has served high-profile clientele from Martin Scorsese — who used Ferdinando’s for a scene in “The Departed” — to Leonardo Di Caprio to multiple New York City mayors and officials.
“It’s like a big hole in my life,” said Brooklyn Heights resident Robert Iannucci, who has been a regular at Ferdinando’s for over 40 years. “This is the best restaurant in New York City to me … my life plan was that the last meal that I have before they put me into the ground, I wanted to have it here.
“Anytime I feel terrible, or I feel weak, or I feel sick or I feel anything, I come down here and have some food from Frank, and then everything is wonderful,” Iannucci, 79, said.
“Ferdinando’s is beloved by everybody in Brooklyn,” said Manhattan resident Andrew DiMaria, whose father owns a building on the same block. “On any given day, you can walk by and see Frank in the window, making the famous panelle special, greeting everybody walking by.”
Carroll Gardens resident Anna said she was 10 years old when her mother began sending over the highway to fetch panelles, rice balls and potato croquettes from Ferdinando’s.
“I could close my eyes and see my mother, my grandmother, my kid brother – everybody we knew was always in here,” a teary Anna said. “[Buffa] is my family, by respect.”
Longtime customers Georgiane and Mario Tanzi said they’ll miss the food and the decades of memories, but they understand Buffa’s decision.
“There comes a time when you reach a certain age, you realize it’s time to stop,” Georgiane said. “Tomorrow’s not promised.
“We’ll miss you, we’ll miss the food,” Georgiane said before Mario insisted Buffa come cook for them at their Bergen Beach home.
But Ferdinando’s may have a future with a new owner at the helm — so long as Buffa can be convinced they’ll keep the tradition going.
Buffa said he’s fielded inquiries, including from a Brooklyn pizzeria owner and a Michelin-rated chef.
“If I give it to you, you have to make sure who knows how to take care of this place and continue the tradition,” Buffa said.
“But I’ll take my time.”