World’s Most Popular Pasta Is Coming to Southern California
Having already established three successful restaurants in New York City, Barilla is announcing today an expansion into the Southland that will begin early fall with two new fast casual restaurants. One on the campus of the University of Southern California at USC Village and another at the upscale South Coast Plaza in Orange County. The 2,600-squa...
Italian food combines deliciously with the delights of Hermosa Beach at Casa Vincenzo
It’s no small accomplishment to take over a space long occupied by an iconic restaurant and then make the new establishment succeed. That was the task facing new owner Vincent Deshayes and his stepson Francois when they took over the much loved Buona Vita, which closed in May. They reopened it as Casa Vincenzo in June — an amazingly fast turnaround...
Enoteca La Storia Grand Opening!!
We cannot be more excited to announce that the Grand Opening of Enoteca La Storia's Little Italy San Jose Location is just a few weeks away! Enoteca La Storia is the 4thItalian Business to open in the Little Italy San Jose Business District, joining Paesano Ristorante, La Piccola Scuola nel Parco, and Bel Bacio Italian café before them. Enoteca La...
Carrara brothers are living la dolce vita thanks to Italian pastries
When they opened Carrara Pastries in a Moorpark strip mall in 2012, brothers Damiano Carrara and Massimiliano Carrara routinely greeted patrons while wearing floppy white chef's hats. On anyone else, the matching chapeaux would have looked downright dorky. On them, the hats signaled an old-school seriousness that has since played out as a classic c...
Gesso Is a Gorgeous New Cali-Italian Restaurant on Fairfax
Fairfax adds a new dinnertime player tonight, with Gesso set to debut in the former Pitfire Pizza space just above Melrose. The restaurant is still operated under Paul Hibler’s American Gonzo Food Corporation label, but offers a starkly different experience than before. With said new experience comes a lot of changes to the decor of the place, too....
Gelato Festival is Coming from Tuscany to America!
When you visit amazing cultural cities like Florence and Rome, there is a central theme displayed on almost every corner… real, authentic Italian gelato. Today, gelato shops have started popping up all across the United States but artisanal Italian gelato is still widely unknown in the U.S. compared to countries in Europe. Now, Gelato Festival is c...
Redwood City’s chef Donato expanding to Berkeley
The chef who first launched the eponymous Donato Enoteca in downtown Redwood City in 2009, then Desco in Old Oakland in 2013, then a Peninsula salumeria and wine bar, Cru, in 2016, will open a Berkeley restaurant in late September. For this venture, Donato & Co., he is partnering with fellow Italian chef and friend Gianluca Guglielmi, formerly the...
Luigi’s Pizza has served Frisco for 20+ years
Luigi’s Pizza has been serving classic Italian dishes in Frisco for 22 years, aiming to create an atmosphere where the community feels like part of the family. “It’s not like a big chain; we’re family-owned. We know everybody, sometimes we even know what they order,” owner Sebian Bardhi said. Bardhi has owned Luigi’s Pizza on Preston Road for 10 ye...
How L.A.’s Early Italian Pioneers Transformed the City’s Food Scene
Today, when Angelinos reflect on Olvera Street in DTLA, they probably think of its rich history as the heart of the Spanish-Mexican pueblo of Los Angeles. What many do not realize is that for a time in the 19thcentury, the street was known as Wine Street, and was dominated by thriving Italian owned wine cellars. From downtown’s long gone Little Ita...
There’s award-winning marinara sauce in the Saratoga Village
Quality ingredients, time spent cooking, consistent tasting and a blend of Italian flavors make for a good marinara sauce, but one ingredient makes it great: love. That is the winning touch, according to Pedro Cipriano, executive chef at Mio Vicino Pasta and Pizzeria Cafe. The popular eatery in Saratoga just won Little Italy San Jose’s Boss of the...
Italian Snack Bar and More Debut in Liberty Public Market
Among the new wave of food vendors in Liberty Public Market is Roma Express, which launches today with Italian sodas, cannoli and savory fried risotto balls called arancini. The cannoli and arancini are two best-selling products at Roma Market, an Italian specialty store that has deep roots in Pasadena and another location in Escondido which is cur...
Italian Mega-Market Eataly Starts to Hire Up in Century City, and More A.M. Intel
The long-awaited Los Angeles location of Eataly is getting close. The Italian-focused market and multi-restaurant concept should be ready to land at the revamped Westfield Century City by the end of this year, and to get that process underway they’re starting to staff up. First things first, a facilities manager to oversee the entire sprawling prop...