A name change signifies that Baci Pizza in East Naples is more than a pizzeria. It’s now Baci Trattoria & Pizza in a new restaurant space less than a mile away from its original location.
“We moved away from pizza, and this location is more like a trattoria. A trattoria in Italian means homemade-style Italian food,” said Baci owner Francesco “Frankie” Garofalo. “We’re famous for our pizza, so we still have pizza, but we upgraded a little bit.”
Baci, which is pronounced BAH-chee and means “kisses” in Italian, launched 10 years ago in a multiunit building on U.S. 41 East in East Naples. This summer, Garofalo had to close the longtime location of his original pizzeria ahead of a redevelopment project.
“We left the beginning of July and as soon as we left, they demolished it,” Garofalo said. “I don’t know what’s going there. The only thing I know is that for six months I’m not working.”
Despite the respite, Garofalo believes his new full-service restaurant will be successful, building on the popularity of his previous location with the addition of more products and services. Baci Trattoria & Pizza & Ristorante opened Nov. 16 at 2740 Bayshore Drive in the same retail strip as I Love Curry. The new restaurant has an expanded dining space and menu for lunch and dinner.
“I came up with a lot of classic dishes that my mom makes at home, like homemade cavatelli and tortellini,” Garofalo said. “We concentrate more on the south side of Italy cuisine.”
Expect Italian-American cuisine with roots in Naples, Italy, and Brooklyn, New York. “I was born in Italy. My parents immigrated [to New York] when I was 10 years old. That’s when I started making pizzas with my uncle,” Garofalo said.
Baci’s menu includes about 20 pasta dishes, pizza, calzones, meat rolls, hot hero sandwiches, soup, salads, appetizers, desserts and chicken, fish and veal entrees.
“And we’re going to do lots of dinner specials. So, every couple of days I’ll come up with a new dinner special,” Garofalo said.
Grandma’s Pie is still one of Baci’s top sellers. The classic sheet-pan pizza features homemade mozzarella cheese topped with dots of sauce and basil. Baci also has New York-style and Sicilian pies, as well as 14 gourmet pizzas, including The Kitchen Sink Pizza with meatballs, pepperoni, sausage, mushrooms, onions and peppers.
The restaurant has a full wine list and serves beer. Garofalo is working to secure a full liquor license soon, he said.
Baci has updated the quality of its service and hired more servers, Garofalo said. The new restaurant has about four times as many seats for guests. The dining room is set for 65 people now and outdoor dining will be available soon.
“We can do private parties and events now. We already have 50 people booked for Dec. 19,” Garofalo said. “We do Pasta Night on Sunday; you get a salad and pasta for $11.95. We do happy hour Monday through Friday from 3 to 5 p.m.”
Baci offers dine-in, carryout, delivery and catering services. The restaurant is open 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily.
