Central Falls restaurants chilled by immigration crackdown. This movement wants to help.

• Central Falls, a predominantly Hispanic community, has been feeling the chill of Trump's immigration crackdown.
• The Milagros Project is encouraging Rhode Islanders to come to Central Falls and patronize some of the many restaurants to help them stay in business.
• Restaurant owners say many of their employees have been working on their immigration cases to stay in the country.

CENTRAL FALLS — A grassroots movement to support small businesses in Central Falls is taking off, as community members say that the clampdown on immigration is taking its toll on the local economy.

Hardly covering one-square mile, the dense, predominantly Hispanic city is home to about 22,500 people. Walkable main roads like Dexter Street and Broad Street house a blend of restaurants, shops and bakeries where one can easily find authentic Mexican, Colombian, Peruvian and Portuguese cuisine lauded for their comforting, homestyle cooking.

The Milagros Project, a nonprofit that helps Rhode Islanders access basic necessities, has been calling for people to patronize Central Falls restaurants.  

“We are partnering with other orgs to help our friends and businesses in Central Falls. If you have the opportunity please support!” the organization wrote on social media.

Close to 40% of Central Falls’ residents are foreign-born and, of them, about 69% do not have U.S. citizenship, according to the latest census data. President Donald Trump’s expansion of immigration enforcement has sown fear in immigrant communities nationwide.

Some immigrants, particularly in mixed-status households, are hesitant to go to work, school or anywhere in public given Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) bolstered presence and the Trump administration seemingly willingness to disregard court orders that halt deportations. Anxieties have also gone up among legal residents following the cancellation of thousands of people’s temporary statuses and high-profile deportations, such as Rhode Island doctor Rasha Alawieh, who was deported this month after returning from Lebanon.

How are restaurants faring?

The Cosmopolitan Restaurant & Lounge had a sizeable crowd Tuesday night with eyes glued to the soccer match airing live between the Colombia and Paraguay national teams. Expectedly, the Colombian restaurant was full of yellow, blue and red Colombian jerseys.

Chef and co-owner Walter Rodriguez said that thanks to loyal customers business has mostly been good, but he noticed that some people in the community are going out less. Although there has been a dip in diners coming in, delivery orders have increased.  

“Some people – after the new president and everything – were scared to go out. Maybe they’re drinking, they get pulled over and ICE gets called,” he said. “People don’t want to go out, but they still want to eat, you know.”

Some of the restaurant’s employees were nervous about coming to work at first, but Rodriguez said that many of their immigrant employees decided to move forward with their immigration cases to solidify residency.

“They’re really good people and they’ve been working on their cases,” he said. “I guess other people don’t have that [documentation], but at the same time, they’re not doing anything but working.”

Central Falls Mayor Maria Rivera has been vocal about wanting to support local businesses and the city’s immigrant community. Service sector jobs are the most common form of employment for the city’s residents.  

“The impact of what’s happening is not good for our small businesses and it’s up to us to keep them afloat. We have so many good restaurants. Come visit us in Central Falls,” she posted to Facebook, in January.

“Please reach out to our Office of Constituent Services and Health (401-318-3788) with questions or concerns, we will continue to serve as a vital resource for services, support, and information,” she wrote in another post, urging people to be wary of misinformation.

Juan Rodriguez, Walter’s brother and co-owner of Cosmopolitan Restaurant & Lounge, is proud of how well their business has done in Central Falls. The Colombian family lived in Boston and worked at restaurants there for 22 years before opening the Rhode Island venture that serves upscale Latin fusion.

“People welcomed us very well,” he said. “Before, to eat octopus, salmon or things like that, they had to go to Providence. Now, they don’t have to. Even people from Providence are coming here to Central Falls because of the love we put into our food and the way we treat people here.”

Which restaurants does The Milagros Project recommend?

• 765 Lounge, 765 Broad St.
• Beirao, 1374 Broad St.
• Cultura Mixta Family Restaurant, 915 Dexter St.
• El Paisa Restaurant Bar and Patio, 598 Dexter St.
• El Paso Restaurant, 1252 Broad St.
• La Cantina Bar and Restaurant, 664 Dexter St.
• La Casona Restaurant, 768 Broad St.
• La Fruta Loca, 883 Dexter St.
• La Hacienda Restaurant & Bar, 1270 Broad St.
• La Sorpresa Restaurant and Bakery, 723 Broad St.
• La Taberna, 695 Lonsdale Ave.
• Maxi Burger, 855 Broad St.
• Sharks Peruvian Cuisine, 1420 Broad St.
• Sonrisa Restaurant, 48 Cross St.
• Sparky’s Restaurant Inc., 548 Dexter St.
• Stanley’s Famous Burgers, 535 Dexter St.
• The Cosmopolitan Restaurant & Lounge, 494 Dexter St.
• Tuxpan Taqueria, 355 Broad St.
• Valentina La Fritura Restaurant, 590 Dexter St.