Suburban restaurants, not dependent on the return of office culture in the city, have fared better in the pandemic than Hartford eateries. Carbone’s and Thomas Hooker Brewing have seen that, as their suburban locations thrive while their urban locations still struggle. Fornarelli’s has seen it, too. The Asylum Street location is scraping by, Vito Fornarelli said, but he is dipping his toe into the suburbs, too, with a new location in Colchester.

“In Hartford, the lunch crowd is gone, and for what’s left, people go where they are familiar with, where they’ve gone before,” he said. “There is no new traffic.” Fornarelli’s just opened a location at 112 Halls Hill Road in Colchester, the town where Fornarelli grew up and still lives. The Italian eatery has been embraced by the community and Fornarelli is optimistic.