L'Italo-Americano

THURSDAY, JULY 23, 2020 www.italoamericano.org 18 L'Italo-Americano A t V i n c e n t i Restaurant in B r e n t w o o d , t h e y h a d t o make rapid and impactful changes in order to adjust to the Covid-19 new reality. And if, in time of a pandemic, wearing a mask, a face shield, and setting up tables at the right social- distance have been pretty much a no-brainer, some other aspects of our new- normal life have hit at more deeper level. "Benvenuta!" Maureen Vincenti tells me in a per- fect Italian as she welcomes me inside her elegant restau- rant, located on the strip of San Vicente Blvd, in one of the wealthiest neighborhood of Los Angeles. "Running a restaurant is a whole new dif- ferent experience now." She underlines as we begin our chat about the future of the food industry in Los Angeles, a t o p i c M a u r e e n s u r e l y knows well as her career star- ted twenty years ago alongsi- de with her late husband, Mauro Vincenti, owner of the renowned Rex Il Ristorante, considered one of the best Italian restaurants in the c o u n t r y . A f t e r h e p a s s e d away in 1996, Maureen ope- ned Vincenti Restaurant with chef Nicola Mastronardi, a year later. " B e f o r e t h e l o c k d o w n , people would come here for the experience, it was their special occasion restaurant, it wasn't that much of a to-go r e s t a u r a n t . E v e r y t h i n g ' s much more casual now, so we have a lot more to-go than we ever had before. It increa- sed of almost 90%." Like for all the other restaurants in Los Angeles, dining have been banned during quaran- tine, but as restaurants are s t i l l e s s e n t i a l , t h e y w e r e allowed to do take-out deli- very. "All of a sudden our phone started ringing. We were running around, going from machine to machine. It happened all in two days. Now it continues to be that way and it's kind of nice after all. It opened up a whole new door. And me being doing t h i s f o r 4 0 y e a r s , i t w a s something nice and fun to do!" The spike experienced in take-out orders definitely had an impact on Vincenti's m e n u a s w e l l . " W e a s k e d ourselves: When our pasta gets to the end destination to someone's house, is it going to still be warm? No, pasta doesn't travel that well, while tortelli, ravioli, lasagna are much better. Our chef had to re-think his dishes in oder to meet the needs of to-go." I n d e e d , c h e f N i c o l a Mastronardi not only had to make his offer shorter but also simpler. His cuisine and his menus used to change seasonally and, in addition to the regular menu, he would prepare a special daily list. His cuisine, a mix of Apulia and Emilia-Romagna flavors, is as creative and regional as it could be. "The menu is much short- er now. I've always made artistic, modern-gourmet dishes, which is why people c o m e h e r e . B u t n o w t h e y want simpler things. I have never made as much pasta a l l a B o l o g n e s e a s n o w . Chicken Cacciatora is the best-selling of the moment because it is easy to re-heat, as well as lasagna and ravioli. Since I had to cut some of my staff and I no longer have the full team, my goal now is to always keep a good quality, but with a shorter menu." Another change he made was about pizza. "We used to h a v e o u r p i z z a n i g h t o n Mondays. I have now put a sign outside to let people know we have pizza available every night. It helped having more people coming to eat here because it is a family meal," he explains. The only compromise chef Nicola could never take is lower the quality of his food. "It's not in my DNA. Some of my clients know my reci- pes by heart, I don't want to let them down." Vincenti's forte has always been pasta which is made fresh, as well as bread and p a s t r y , o n a d a i l y b a s i s ; everything else, beside fresh vegetables, is imported from Italy. "I was one of the first to import fish from Italy, sea bass, sea bream, sole, about twenty years ago, and to add octopus in our menu because it's a tradition of where I come from, Bari. We make it roasted with fresh vegetables, fava beans, asparagus and artichokes; an Italian classic r e v i s i t e d w i t h f r e s h California vegetables. During the lockdown, fish was hard to get, so I only used local products. Meat was difficult to get too. I have always used fresh meat and during those m o n t h s i t w a s d e l i v e r e d frozen, which is not some- thing I like. And prices sky- rocketed as well. It was not easy, you could not top up that price on the final con- sumer. But again, I won't give up on quality." A g e - w i s e , V i n c e n t i Restaurant has always had middle aged and older cos- tumers, who are now afraid o f l e a v i n g t h e h o u s e a n d come eat outside. Another difference that Nicola and M a u r e e n h a d t o h a n d l e , which surprisingly led them to find a new niche. "The younger people were always the ones that were a little more scared to come in. I think because the price point was a little higher than the other restaurants around the area. That's not necessarily t r u e , b u t I t h i n k i n t h e i r minds, they think it is. So they would again use it as a special occasion. So I'd see them once a year, even thou- gh they lived in the neigh- borhood. I think this whole new world has given them a different outlook on what they want to eat. After being stuck at home for so long Vincenti's formula to overcome the pandemic SILVIA GIUDICI they appreciate the freshness of food," says Maureen. S o m e t h i n g t h a t h a s already adjusted is the indoor dining that was recently ban- ned from the State, so restau- rants are now exploiting their outdoor spaces, creating a p e c u l i a r a t m o s p h e r e a n d offering a different experien- ce for costumers. "I think it is really necessary; in Santa Monica they already did that, also on Main Street. They took over the bike lane and the car lane, and they exten- ded the space in front of the restaurants and the bars into the street and allowed them to put up barriers. So we actually petitioned the city to see if we could get two bar- riers. I haven't heard back y e t , b u t r i g h t n o w w e ' r e extending a little bit more onto the sidewalk. And it's lovely as there isn't a better place than Los Angeles to be outside during the summer. A n d s o I ' m v e r y b l e s s e d about that. I wish we had a garden, but we're trying to do o u r b e s t w i t h w h a t w e ' v e got." Maureen says as she s m i l e s t e l l i n g m e C h e f Nicola's dream was always to have an outdoor patio. It seems to me they both strongly care about keeping alive the Italian regional cui- sine tradition, as they also seem to openly embrace the change, as well as the possi- bility to move into another location if needed. "I try not to be attached to anything. I always try to look ahead and say, okay, if something else came up, that would be great. We, both of us, could have something smaller. And so, yes, we're always open to looking for something diffe- rent or just something to keep us alive. It's 23 years here and 23 years is a long time. It makes me laugh that I've seen chef Nicola's kids grow into adults and all my customers too, I've seen little babies grow into adults who are now my customers. It's just very strange." At last what's Maureen and Chef Nicola's take on the future of their field? "Oh, we're going to survive a n d t o a d a p t . W e a l w a y s have. We are positive about it." They know the food busi- n e s s v e r y w e l l , s o I t r u s t them. Maureen Vincenti and Chef Nicola Mastronardi (Photo courtesy of Vincenti Restaurant) LOS ANGELES ITALIAN COMMUNITY

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