Partenope Ristorante Expands to Richardson

The pizza scene in North Texas continues to expand, and this time Richardson gets a taste.

Richardson's CORE District is a large entertainment area that straddles Central Expressway with five different zones, including Richardson Heights, Interurban, Lockwood and Chinatown. These spaces all have unique restaurants, retail shops and community spaces.

Next year, the highly lauded Italian spot, Partenope Ristorante, will expand to this area, opening along Greenville Avenue, near the corner of Main Street.

Partenope's restaurant on Main Street in downtown Dallas was the Observer’s best Italian restaurant in 2022. Chef Dino Santonicola and his wife, Megan, opened the spot in 2019, serving authentic dishes from Dino's native Southern Italy. The restaurant's pizza is certified as Vera Pizza Napoletana (VPN), signifying that it meets true Neapolitan-style standards.

As for the move to the suburb, for Santonicola it was an easy decision.

“When I moved to Dallas from Seattle in 2011, I immediately settled right here in Richardson,” Dino said in a press release. “Today, my family and I frequently walk to Downtown Richardson for coffee at Staycation or burgers at Del’s, and we also stop at this intersection while taking our kids to school. So, when we learned about this site’s availability, it was almost like destiny.”

This spot will have much of the same menu as the original Partenope in Dallas, including pasta, pizza and salads. The Richardson location will also have a patio.

According to a statement from the city of Richardson, Partenope will receive a $300,000 grant for the space through a city Tax Increment Financing Zone #1, which includes facade improvements and needed modernization.