Casa di Canzonetta Opens in Downtown Youngstown
YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – Casa di Canzonetta opened its door Wednesday, serving dinner customers its new menu of old-school Italian dishes.
The restaurant on the ground floor of the DoubleTree by Hilton Youngstown Downtown hotel had been closed since the May 28 explosion at the adjacent Realty Tower, which has since been razed.
Chef-owner Mark Canzonetta and a half-dozen other chefs were in the kitchen Wednesday afternoon making fresh pasta and preparing other items for the evening service.
In the four months that it was closed, the restaurant was given a completely new theme and look. It now pays homage to Canzonetta’s roots and the Italian favorites – with modern culinary touches – that have long been favorites in the Mahoning Valley.
Roughly 600 photos of the Canzonetta, Rosano and Cicero families now dot the walls of the restaurant. The three families represent the extended family of Canzonetta, who is a Warren native. All three families have been in the food industry in the Valley for over a century.
After getting a new identity during its downtime, the restaurant is emerging as a new dining destination, Canzonetta said.
“Everything is new. The walls on the outside of the building are the only thing that is the same,” he said. “The walls on the inside are covered with photos from Italy or from my past. It will remind you of a steak house or Italian restaurant in New York City.”
Artsy decals have been placed on the exterior windows that depict the new food and drink menu.
“It’s just an amazing transformation,” Canzonetta said. “And it’s going to be this way until my daughter Gina takes it over.”
The menu is totally different from the previous Bistro 1907, the restaurant Canzonetta formerly operated at the site. Longtime customers will find that everything has changed.
“It’s 100% old-school Italian,” said Canzonetta, “and deeply rooted in the Canzonetta and Rosano families and my Uncle Pete Cicero’s restaurant. My family has always been in the hospitality business, going back to my great-grandfather’s Savoy Bar in downtown Warren. And the Rosanos had a bakery in downtown Warren at the turn of the last century.”
Casa Di Canzonetta, 44 E. Federal St., will be open seven days a week. Hours are 4 to 10 p.m. (11 p.m. for the bar) Monday-Thursday; 4 to 11 p.m. (midnight for the bar) Friday-Saturday; and 4 to 9 p.m. Sunday.
It will resume serving brunch on weekends Nov. 2.
“It will be an Italian brunch,” Canzonetta said. “We’re carrying over some favorites from the past [brunch], but with an Italian twist.”
The establishment has a dining room and separate bar area, plus a room on the mezzanine level that is used for private parties.
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Pictured at top: Mark Canzonetta, left, chef-owner of Casa di Canzonetta, makes fresh pasta in the kitchen of his restaurant.
Copyright 2024 The Business Journal, Youngstown, Ohio.
