On the heels of Leslie Brenner's hyper-delicious Italian food photo orgy, news of another Italian restaurant has landed in my in-box. Francesco Farris will open Zio Cecio Cucina Italiana next month on Lovers Lane, just west of Neighborhood Services, Bijoux, and Fireside pies.
The restaurant will feature a fettuccine bolognese, squid ink spaghetti with clams, potato ravioli and ossobuco, among others, according to a press release. Farris, who's been working with his brother, Efisio, at Arcodoro & Pomodoro, describes the restaurant as a casual and home-style interpretation of his Sardinian roots.
Arcodoro & Pomodoro wasn't featured in the Morning News slideshow, but the restaurant did receive nods as best new restaurant and best Italian restaurant here at the Observer when it opened in 2001.
Boasting an open kitchen, Zio Cecio will give diners a view of the action as Farris prepares their meals when they sit inside the restaurant, and when weather is nice a patio will offer outdoor dining.
Zio Cecio joins a growing list of restaurants producing authentic Italian cooking, an antidote to the red sauce and meat ball variety we all grew up on. That Italian American cooking continues to recede into the background. Although while I'm certainly excited to see what Ferris cooks up, his menu does make me nostalgic for a hunk of lasagna the size of a car battery.