Cafe Frankie's Parrot Frankie Reunited with Owner Anthony Calicchio After Week-Long Disappearance

Frankie, the pistachio‑cracking yellow‑winged Amazon parrot who has been a cafe mascot at Cafe Frankie's in Boynton Beach, was reunited with owner Anthony Calicchio after nearly a week missing, Palm Beach County Animal Care and Control confirmed. Frankie has resumed his usual perch and "is now back singing and chatting with guests in his regular cage at Cafe Frankie's in Boynton Beach," a local report said.

Police reported that the people who initially found Frankie gave him to a woman who lives in Boca Raton, and Calicchio said the woman was reluctant to return the bird. "Calicchio says the woman was initially reluctant to give Frankie back, but surrendered the bird to Palm Beach County Animal Care and Control Thursday morning," a CBS12 dispatch noted, and Palm Beach County Animal Care and Control took custody that same Thursday morning to reunite Frankie with his owner.

Anthony Calicchio described how the Boca Raton woman had fallen for the parrot, telling a reporter, "She thought it was the greatest bird in the world. She didn’t want to lose her new best friend." PalmBeachPost described Frankie as a 10‑year‑old yellow‑winged Amazon parrot who has been the featured attraction at the Ocean Avenue cafe for more than 10 years, dancing in the rain, crawling up patrons' arms, nibbling ears, and prompting customers to make reservations just to sit next to him. Calicchio also said simply, "He's a really cool bird."

Accounts of when the disappearance and recovery occurred contain differing dates in the available reports. One set of reports identifies the reunion as having been reported on February 23, 2026, while a PalmBeachPost story gives explicit dates for an earlier incident, saying Frankie had been missing since Friday, July 5, 2019, and that Calicchio "got him back on Thursday, July 11, 2019." The sources do not explicitly state whether the 2019 dates and the February 2026 reporting describe the same incident or separate events.

Local television updates conveyed Calicchio's relief and ongoing coordination with officials: "Frankie the parrot has been found safely, says his owner Anthony Calicchio. Calicchio is working with police and Animal Care and Control to..." The owner told reporters he plans to take a technical step to prevent another disappearance; "To avoid losing Frankie again, Calicchio says he plans to microchip the bird."

Frankie was returned to Cafe Frankie's on Ocean Avenue and has already resumed interacting with customers, maintaining the cafe role he has held for years. Calicchio's plan to microchip the 10‑year‑old parrot stands as the immediate concrete step to keep Frankie where regulars can continue their annual photos and visitors can still watch him dance and crack pistachios.