Help Alex Support Santa Fe Restaurant Employees

Santa Fe Restaurant  and the Superheroes who work there have been a part of the Upper West Side for nearly 40 years, and now, like countless other businesses, we are at risk of closing due to the pandemic.  

When we were asked to close our doors to dine-in customers, a crazy scramble ensued to recreate our business into a functioning and extremely sanitary “to go” window, while simultaneously keeping as many employees as possible on the payroll and solvent. For now, we are continuing that effort and re-inventing ourselves literally every day.

To say the least, it’s been challenging, intellectually, physically, spiritually, philosophically, and of course, monetarily. As the pandemic worsens and more necessary restrictions are placed on all of us, these challenges continue to grow. Each day, more of our employees are too afraid to come to work, while others, both out of necessity and out of love, are bravely showing up each day as they struggle with the same fears we all share. Our loyal team is willing to take the added risk to support themselves and their families, in order to keep our local community fed and properly inebriated.

While we whole-heartedly agree with Governor Cuomo's decision to grant restaurant employees “essential” status, our ability to keep our employees solvent is becoming increasingly difficult. We have seen a more than 60% drop in revenue and it is for this reason I, Alejandro S. Fresquez, locally known as Alex, the General Manager of Santa Fe, am starting this GoFundMe page.

Honesty is and has been (mostly) unavoidable for me, so I’d like to be very clear about what I am asking. The money I am trying to raise is solely and simply to support the employees who we have asked and who have in turn agreed to work during this trying time. I am doing this independent of the owner and the corporation that is Sante Fe Restaurant and I am taking sole responsibility for every penny donated.

I cannot guarantee that this money will keep our doors open, just as I cannot say what the future holds for any of us. What I can guarantee is that ALL the money will go to our brave employees who could really use your contribution to continue cooking, mixing, packaging, and delivering the delicious food and margaritas Upper West Siders and, in fact, people from all over the world have come to know and love over the past 38 years. 

Thank you to anyone who can give. Thank you for ANY amount you are able to give. If you understandably can’t give, thank you for sharing this page on your favorite social media platforms.

Sincerely and lovingly,
Alex Fresquez
General Manager of The Fe