When Andrea Matteucci and Stefania Bertozzi decided to open their restaurant, Colleyville’s Loveria Caffe, they left their tight-knit hometown and crossed an ocean. The husband-and-wife business partners were already working together as architects in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy when they decided they wanted to open an Italian restaurant in the United States.

Bertozzi said the idea to consider doing so near Dallas and Fort Worth came from an unexpected source: a North Richland Hills opera singer staying in their home. After months of research, before and after the move, they chose a location in Colleyville, invited their friend from Emilia-Romagna, Michele Ragazzini, to join them as chef and opened. In March they celebrated their one-year anniversary.