SUGO Pasta Kitchen, a Southern Italian inspired restaurant, will open in the new foodie haven of Altrincham this July.
The restaurant, which is set to be the first of its kind in Manchester, is founded by former Honest Crust colleagues, Alex De Martiis, 30, and Jonny Marcogliese, 28.
“I do think it's unique. Definitely in Manchester, there’s nowhere doing what we’re doing,” De Martiis told Taste of Manchester.
“My Dad’s from Southern Italy, and so is Jonny’s Mum,” he adds. “Each reigion of Italy is passionate about the food that they make, and we want to stay true to where we’re from.”
From a traditional sott’olio to handmade fresh and dried pasta, the pair are committed to sourcing the best ingredients for their seasonal menu.
“The whole region we are focusing on is Puglia, in the south, and cime di rapa is their typical ingredient," De Martiis told us. "It was one of our initial ingredients we wanted to get on there, but it’s not easy to get."
The regional Southern Italian vegetable is therefore being grown specifically for Sugo by local food co-operative Manchester Veg People.
"If we were in London we would have no problem getting it at all, but getting it here was an issue. We were delighted when David (Manchester Veg People) said he could grow it for us,” says De Martiis, who aims for a flexible menu reflecting seasonal ingredients. Opting out of a traditional printed menu, the dishes will instead be drawn up daily on chalk boards.
“Central to this concept, is we want to showcase people’s talents, and not just think we know everything. We’re quite happy to say our forte is making the food we’re making. If there’s another person who makes great ice cream, we’ll champion that.”
The wines and beers, supplied by Reserve and Blackjack, will change to reflect the seasons, and dessert will be supplied by local ice-cream purveyor, Gingers Comfort Emporium.
In light of this, De Martiis is keen to stress that Sugo is not an Italian restaurant as such.
“You won't walk in and think you're walking into an Italian restaurant. We’ll be playing music we like, it’ll look the way we like it. We’re not afraid that we’re half English and I think that can bring a lot to the table as well.”
Sugo Pasta Kitchen is estimated to open in early July on Shaws Road, Altrincham. Keep up to date by following their twitter account here.