For nearly seven decades, the Kelly family has been in the restaurant business in Northeast Philadelphia.<\/p>\n
What began in 1958 as a small luncheonette run by Brett Kelly’s father and grandfather \u2014 selling ham sandwiches for a quarter \u2014 eventually grew into Kelly’s Seafood, where four generations of the family have worked.<\/p>\n
With its family atmosphere, famous snapper soup and cozy dining room, Kelly’s became a beloved neighborhood gathering place.<\/p>\n
“One customer put on Facebook that we’re like the ‘Cheers’ of Philadelphia, because people come in, like, ‘Hey!'” Brett Kelly said. “Everybody knows everybody.”<\/p>\n
Now, the restaurant in the Bustleton neighborhood is preparing to close at the end of the month.<\/p>\n
General manager Brett Kelly said the immediate reason is deeply personal: his twin brother and “right-hand man,” Brian Kelly, was diagnosed with stage 4 melanoma and can no longer work the long hours the restaurant requires.<\/p>\n
“He’s used to working six days and 70 hours a week. Now he’s six,” Brett Kelly said of his brother, Brian.<\/p>\n
Brett Kelly added that they had always discussed that if one of the two brothers was ever unable to work, they would know it was time to close.<\/p>\n
But Brett Kelly said the business had already been facing growing pressure for years.<\/p>\n
He said Friday and Saturday nights can look more like Thursdays did before the pandemic, and that the late-night crowd has largely disappeared.<\/p>\n
“The 9 o’clock and after crowd, business is gone,” Kelly said. “I never had to close the kitchen at 9:30 on a Friday night until this year.”<\/p>\n
At the same time, the cost of running the restaurant has climbed sharply.<\/p>\n
Kelly pointed to king crab legs as one example. Before the pandemic, he said they cost roughly $18 to $19 a pound. Now, he said, the price is about $48 a pound.<\/p>\n
“I can’t sell it,” he said. “I had to take it off the menu.”<\/p>\n
Ben Fileccia, with the Pennsylvania Restaurant and Lodging Association, said those pressures are being felt across the industry by family-owned restaurants.\u00a0<\/p>\n
“Across the commonwealth, they have been struggling,” Fileccia said.<\/p>\n