Rockville restaurant persevered through burglary thanks to local community. Here’s how the owner is giving back for Thanksgiving.
In summer 2018, when Craig’s restaurant in Rockville was burglarized and its cash register stolen, its loyal customers got angry. “The community didn’t appreciate that at all,” said owner Craig Wright.
They rallied around the soul-food takeout spot. Fans of Craig’s gathered together and collected enough money for Wright to put in a security system. “It’s cool what complete strangers can do for each other,” he said.
Wright returned the favor — that autumn and every autumn since. On Thursday, for the fifth year in a row, Wright will open his restaurant and offer a free Thanksgiving dinner to anyone who wants it.
“The community responded to me in a time of need. It was my turn to give back,” said Wright, who lives in Andover.
The meal is traditional, but soul food-tinged. Wright offers roast turkey, jerk turkey, mac-n-cheese, stuffing, candied yams, corn and green beans. Craig’s will be open noon to 3 p.m. All holiday dinners are takeout-only.
Wright’s beloved standing in Rockville would have surprised the person he used to be. He recalls those days just by looking out the window of his 13 West Main St. restaurant. Up the hill, he sees the Rockville courthouse. As a youth, he spent a lot of time there, not of his own free will.
“I made a bunch of wrong decisions. From the age of 18 to 25, I was always involved in some kind of punishment: prison, probation, parole,” he said.
That life taught him a valuable lesson. “You have to be responsible and accountable for yourself. I had to get my life together and make some correct decisions or I knew what lay ahead of me,” he said. “Every time I set foot in that courthouse, I got longer and longer time.”
Wright left the system for good in 2013. He got a job at Zocco’s Bistro in Windsor. “I kept rising in the ranks,” he said. The work there, and at other restaurants, taught Wright that he wanted to run his own restaurant.
In 2017 he opened Craig’s. In the small space, he sells soul-food favorites such as chicken (fried, baked, jerk, smothered, BBQ), pork chops smothered or fried; fried catfish, whiting, salmon and shrimp; BBQ ribs and side dishes such as collard greens, mac-n-cheese, yams, okra, black-eyed peas and red beans and rice. Daily specials are chicken and waffles, wings, loaded fries and sandwiches. He is open Tuesday to Sunday for lunch and dinner.
Wright’s success, and life story, have captured the community and the state. In 2019, he was invited to cater Gov. Ned Lamont’s inaugural gala. He has worked with the Willimantic NAACP to talk to youths about the criminal life. This year, he was inducted into the the Connecticut Hall of Change, an initiative to honor the formerly incarcerated who have become successful in their fields. Also this year, Connecticut Restaurant Association has named Wright as one of four “Community Impact Leaders,” restaurant owners whose efforts on behalf of their community go above and beyond the norm.
Probably the most personal affirmation that he is a different person than he used to be comes from that same place he sees up the hill: the courthouse.
“The head prosecutor, Matthew Gedansky, and I are very good friends. Back then, he sent me to years in prison. Fast forward 12 years: He and I both sit on the YMCA board in Ellington, and he was the one who nominated me.”
Those who want to donate to Wright’s Thanksgiving meal giveaway, or to volunteer to help him that day, can email craigskitchen860@gmail.com.
Susan Dunne can be reached at sdunne@courant.com.
