Belmar Eatery That Helped Workers Amid Coronavirus Closes Briefly

BELMAR – The restaurant that came to the aid of its workers with a $50,000 credit line has to temporarily close.

"We will be temporarily closing our doors in order to keep our employees, families and customers safe," Federico’s Pizza and Restaurant on Main Street said on Facebook.

"Thank you for all of your support. We look forward to serving you again in the near future. Stay safe and be well.

Mike Morin and his brother, Bryan, co-owners of Federico’s, took out a credit line of $50,000 to make sure their employees will get paid during the coronavirus crisis.

They were expected to get their wages for several months. Mike said he and his brother "weren't doing this for publicity."

"We had to protect our employees," he said. "We said, 'Let's go help our employees.' "

The brothers have been worried about the fate of their business, but they're more worried about their employees.

The brothers say they were getting takeout customers. What they have gotten is a lot of people calling them up, and writing them, all to ask how they can help them.

"It's crazy," Mike said. "We've been getting calls from all over the country from people just wanting to donate."