Tag: Italian Food

Fiorenza, a new family-owned Italian restaurant is taking root in Alpharetta. At the center is Jessi Qilafi, who grew up in Florence, began working in restaurants at age 14, and absorbed the rhythms of Italian hospitality firsthand.

“Why was I not cooking the food I eat at home, you know what I mean?” Pat Pascarella asks as he lounges on a couch in an Ernest Hemingway–themed speakeasy, part of his Italian American concept, Rosso. He speaks of his new restaurant (located near the corner of 10th Street and Virginia Avenue) with the same bullishness of Papa. “I tried doing fancy, trendy dishes for Instagram,” he says. “Now I’m back to the food I want to eat.”

When Trattoria Lucia quietly opened its doors last late year, it filled a gap in Glenwood Park’s dining landscape: an Italian restaurant designed for everyday dining, families included. Located directly across the street from its sibling cocktail lounge, Vesper, the restaurant offers a lighter, dinner-centric counterpoint to the lounge’s jewel-toned, sultry aesthetic.

Yeppa & Co.’s new Beltline outpost has been open since May, but it seems as if it’s been there much longer—perhaps because of the name recognition from its wildly successful Buckhead Village location (an offshoot of Storico Fresco fame). The restaurant’s name pays tribute to a beloved figure from cofounder Stephen Peterson’s childhood: a family friend and restaurateur known for his charisma and for shouting “Yeppa” when excited.

A painted portrait of Nonna Dora looks down over everything. She is owner-chef Patrizio Alaia’s grandmother from his hometown of Naples, Italy—the one who instilled his love for cooking. If he looks familiar as he passes through the 20-seat dining area, it’s because he is the former general manager and pizzaiolo of Sotto Sotto and the former owner of Mozza Bella.

At Rosetta, a new Italian bakery in Buckhead, pastry offerings are plentiful and change based on the time of day you visit. There’s a menu board, but it’s best to walk down the line and let your eyes guide your choices.

Atlanta is a steakhouse town. As a result, such restaurants find differentiating themselves challenging, and newcomer Il Premio faces that obstacle head-on. The restaurant offers a distinct twist from the American or French-leaning steakhouses we’ve come to know and love. It’s a prize, indeed.

There have been changes at Nino’s over the years—new floors, better wine glasses, upscale place settings—but the most obvious and transformative is the recent expansion of the restaurant following its acquisition of the hair salon next door. Antonio Noviello, who seemed to be an immutable feature, retired, leaving Nino’s in the capable hands of his middle daughter, Alessandra, and her husband Micah Hayes.

With a name that means “a little bit of Italy,” Pochino promises Old World flavors with imported, high-quality ingredients. Customers can choose their pasta (penne, spaghetti, tagliatelle, gnocchi, and maccheroni) and sauce (options include pomodoro, cacio e pepe, pesto, and Bolognese), a salad (house or caprese), and/or a pinsa (eight varieties are available).

Chef Kevin Maxey boasts an impressive resume. The former vice president of culinary for Ford Fry's Rocket Farms Restaurants honed his skills at Tom Colicchio’s Craft and Danny Meyer’s Gramercy Tavern in New York. The past four years, he’s been helping other restaurateurs fine-tune their businesses; now it’s time for him to focus on his own. On March 18, Pendolino opens in the Chastain Market development, taking over the space previously home to Santorini Tavern. It’ll serve straightforward Italian cuisine with a Southern spin, focusing its fare on a wood-burning oven.