After six years of serving Portuguese favorites, building friendships, and becoming part of the weekly routine for countless local families, Piri Piri Kitchen in Somerset has announced that it will soon serve its final meals.
Owner Sandy Batista Andrade shared the news with customers in a heartfelt message that wasn’t focused on sadness but instead on gratitude, memories, and the importance of supporting the small businesses that make Somerset special.
Piri Piri Kitchen opened its doors in 2020 with a relatively simple idea: a Portuguese store with a small food menu. It didn’t stay small for very long. As Sandy put it, customers quickly “blew the doors off the place” with their enthusiasm for Portuguese food.
The response from the community pushed Piri Piri in a new direction. The menu grew, party platters were added, catering followed, and the small takeout spot became known for Portuguese comfort food that kept customers coming back week after week.
From Bifanas to Buckets of Sauce
Over the years, dishes like bifanas, stuffies, Portuguese stuffing, rice pudding, and kale soup became part of Piri Piri Kitchen’s everyday language and, for many customers, part of their regular routine.
Customers also weren’t afraid to challenge Sandy with requests she never imagined she’d be making in Somerset, including Cachupa. Then there was the sauce. Sandy joked that she quickly discovered that “sauce addiction is REAL in this town.” What started with smaller containers eventually grew to pints, quarts, and, yes, entire buckets.
Those little moments tell a much bigger story about Piri Piri Kitchen. It wasn’t simply a place where people stopped to pick up dinner. It became a neighborhood business where customers felt comfortable asking for their favorite foods, trying something different, and getting to know the person behind the counter.
“There were certainly more ups than downs in our little takeout spot, nestled in the heart of Somerset,” Sandy shared.
One Last Bifana
Piri Piri Kitchen will serve its final bifanas this weekend, giving longtime customers one more opportunity to stop in, grab some takeout, and say hello before the doors close. But Sandy’s farewell came with an unusual request. Instead of filling the comments with messages about how much Piri Piri will be missed, she asked customers to do something that could help another local business.
Tag your favorite local café or restaurant. Maybe it’s a favorite breakfast spot, a hidden gem, a go-to lunch destination, or a restaurant that simply deserves a little more attention. “Your tag might help someone discover a new favorite, and it will remind all of us just how important our small businesses are to the community,” she wrote.
Sandy started things off herself, recognizing Cindy’s Breakfast, Pink Bean, and County Fare Hotdog, three women-owned businesses she said helped her along her own journey. It’s a fitting way for Piri Piri Kitchen to say goodbye. Instead of focusing solely on Piri Piri in its final days, Sandy is using the attention surrounding the closure to highlight other locally owned businesses.
Six Years Worth Celebrating
Small businesses don’t need to last forever to make an impact on a community. Piri Piri Kitchen opened during one of the most challenging years imaginable for a new business. From that small Portuguese store and limited menu in 2020 grew six years of meals, catering orders, conversations, laughs, special requests, and plenty of sauce.
Most importantly, it created connections. Sandy ended her announcement with a simple message that summed up those six years: “Piri Piri ❤️’s Somerset!”
Judging by the community that grew around the little takeout spot, Somerset loved Piri Piri right back. And while customers may soon have to find somewhere else to get their bifanas, Sandy made one thing clear: when you see her around town, don’t be shy.
After six years of feeding Somerset, she says it’s finally time for someone else to buy her lunch.
Click HERE to read Sandy’s post.
