If you closed your eyes on the way to Del Porto Ristorante and opened them when you arrived at its outdoor patio, you might think you're standing in a courtyard along the Mediterranean Sea. If you got a whiff of their shrimp or meatballs or clams, you might think you found a slice of heaven in Italy.
The problem is the authentic cuisine isn't what you would be smelling.
"We expected a lot of business from the World Cup but because the smell is so unbearable, people couldn't sit outside on the patio," said Del Porto Ristorante general manager Larissa Coelho.
"The smell is horrible. It smells like rotten eggs. All day long. Every day," said Vinicios Silva, a body shop employee.
The auto body shop employees down the street haven't been spared either.
City officials say that putrid stench is coming from the Edward P. Decher Secondary Wastewater Treatment Facility, a waste treatment plant.
It's owned and operated by the Joint Meeting of Essex and Union Counties.
It serves several communities. The city of Elizabeth is one of its tenants.
The city's Department of Health and Human Services says that since April it has been inundated with complaints.
"I would describe the smell as if you were sitting on your own toilet and decided to put your head in it," said Elizabeth Mayor J. Christian Bollwage.
The mayor says the city is ready to take legal action and levy substantial daily fines against the facility.
"The odor that has been emanating over the last couple of months has been the strongest it's ever been in the history of our city," Mayor Bollwage said.
The mayor said the joint meeting has not done what is necessary to control the odors.
"For the joint meeting to say it depends on which way the wind is blowing on what area is affected is frankly a really poor answer for a governmental agency," Mayor Bollwage said.
The mayor says if the city can't resolve this problem, he's ready to get to ask the governor's office to get involved.
Eyewitness News reached out multiple times to the Joint Meeting of Essex and Union Counties but have not heard back.
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