Beloved Pizzeria Owner Saves Dying Customer’s Life

Mark Iacono, the famed owner of Lucali, Brooklyn’s wood-fired pizza hotspot in Carroll Gardens, is known for his artisanal pies and dedication to his craft.

But in 2023, he served up something far more extraordinary than pizza—he helped save a life. When Iacono learned that his close friend and longtime customer, Theo Alano, 54, was suffering from end-stage kidney disease, the pizza maestro’s world was turned upside down. Refusing to stand by and do nothing, Iacono turned to his vast social media following, igniting a chain of events that would change everything.

In December 2023, Iacono posted an emotional plea to his 245,000 Instagram followers, explaining that Alano, a creative director, was desperately searching for a kidney donor. Alano’s health had deteriorated rapidly after contracting a severe case of COVID-19 in May 2022 while returning from a trip to Ireland. The illness caused his kidneys to fail, and by early 2023, Alano was bedridden and critically ill. His condition worsened to the point where doctors at Lenox Hill Hospital told him he had mere hours to live.

“I was yellow, frail, and couldn’t get out of bed,” Alano recalled. “The nurse told my friends I might not make it through the next hour.”

Fortunately, dialysis treatment, which removes toxins and fluid from the blood, kept Alano alive, though barely. He began attending grueling four-hour sessions three mornings a week at the Southern Manhattan Dialysis Center. Despite the toll it took on his body, dialysis was not a permanent solution, and Alano faced the bleak reality of a 10-year waitlist for a kidney through the New York State Donate Life Registry. As the months dragged on, he grew desperate.

In a heartfelt Instagram post titled “Hoping for a Holiday Miracle,” Alano pleaded for help. “If I have ever impacted your life, or if anyone has changed your life in some form—I challenge you to pay it forward and consider donating a kidney to me,” he wrote. Even celebrities like Jessica Alba, a friend of Alano’s, joined in, amplifying his call for help by sharing his post.

But it was Iacono’s message that ultimately made the difference. Rusty Rastello, a 42-year-old Upper West Side resident and longtime fan of Lucali, saw the post and was immediately moved.

As a professor at the Culinary Institute of America and a sommelier, Rastello was no stranger to the tight-knit world of food and drink professionals. He also had a personal connection to kidney donation—his uncle had donated a kidney to his brother 32 years earlier, a memory that came rushing back when he saw Iacono’s post.

“I couldn’t shake the feeling that I needed to help,” Rastello said. He reached out to Alano, and after an emotional meeting over coffee in Hell’s Kitchen, the two formed an instant bond. “It was like I had known him for years,” Alano said of their first encounter.

Rastello underwent a series of rigorous tests—blood work, urine samples, and a full physical—to determine if he was a match. In May 2024, doctors confirmed that Rastello was the perfect donor for Alano. The duo prepared for the life-changing surgery, which was scheduled for August 7, 2024, at NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia University Irving Medical Center.

The transplant surgery, while intense, was successful. Rastello’s operation took just three hours and was minimally invasive, requiring only a few small incisions in his abdomen. Alano’s surgery, however, was more complex and lasted six hours. When the procedure was over, both men were filled with a mix of relief and joy. Rastello vividly remembered the moment his fiancé told him that his kidney had successfully been transplanted into Alano. “I just started crying. It was this overwhelming emotion somewhere between excitement and relief,” he said. “Seeing Theo afterward—it was remarkable. His color had returned, the light was back in his eyes. I knew we had both made it through.”

After two nights in the hospital, Rastello went home to recover, while Alano stayed for four. Two months later, both men were doing well and feeling great. The pair celebrated their recovery and new friendship with a wood-fired pizza at Lucali, where their journey had begun. “He did something so selfless,” Alano said of Rastello. “I don’t know how I got to be so lucky.”

For Rastello, the experience has been life-changing, too. “This journey wasn’t just about saving a life—it’s about the connection and the friendship that came out of it,” he reflected.

Mark Iacono’s simple Instagram post sparked an incredible act of generosity that brought together strangers and forged a bond that will last a lifetime. It’s a reminder that, even in difficult times, community and compassion can inspire miracles.

For more information about living kidney donation, visit the National Kidney Foundation’s website at Kidney.org.