This 60-Year-Old Italian Restaurant Is Upgrading With a Huge Pasta Lab | Eater SF

"Ever-popular, Old World Italian spot is trading its jammed Kettleman Lane digs for a 300-seat, 9,000-square-foot palace at a new Reynolds Ranch address, with an exquisite interior by De la Cruz Interior Design and Arcanum Architecture (the same team behind the 2017 remodel). While the move is about growth, the soul stays put: the menu remains almost unchanged, with fresh pasta as the main character alongside black pepper cream gnocchi, a wide array of pizzas, baked eggplant Parmigiana, a Lodi-centered wine list, and a classic cocktail menu (the Mamma Mia! with vodka and St. Germain arrives topped with dehydrated pear). The big upgrade is a pasta lab with almost floor-to-ceiling windows so guests can watch the process in real time; it will also turn out housemade sourdough baguettes, focaccia, and brioche, inspired by a small operation in Rome. Rooted in a family lineage that began in Calabria and opened its first Northern California restaurant in the 1960s, the Lodi outpost—launched in 1985 and serving the community for 40 years—had simply outgrown its space; the goal now is to remain both a destination for travelers and a mainstay for locals while holding fast to quality food, customer service, and respect for employees. Reopening is slated for Saturday, November 8 (after closing Saturday, November 1), with hours 11 a.m.–9 p.m. Monday–Thursday, 11 a.m.–10 p.m. Friday, 10 a.m.–10 p.m. Saturday, and 10 a.m.–9 p.m. Sunday." - Paolo Bicchieri