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Over the past 17 years, the family Varchetta has shared authentic Italian food with us and, interestingly, been slightly ahead of the curve in terms of popular culture/ambiance. They seem to hit the right note at the right time. It could come with experience—the first family restaurant opened in 1898 in Italy. Guests sat at communal tables and were given a carafe of wine and a plate of whatever great-grandmother was cooking that day. Wine was made in the cellar, stairs led to the restaurant and the family lived above. Hmm, sounds a bit like our "new" urban villages.

Photo: l-r Salvio, Melina, Leo at Barolo

After arriving in Seattle, brothers Salvio and Roberto created Buongusto on upper Queen Anne in 1990. It was a neighborhood favorite and also a destination dining spot for nearly 12 years. A third brother, Leo, created Mamma Melina’s in the University District. Melina and husband Pasquale (already retired) wanted to be near the boys, so they headed to the US as well. As Leo laughingly recalls, businesswoman Mamma said "I want to be a partner if you’re going to use my name." Mamma Melina’s is still going strong, packed most nights. "It was put together in an amateur way," explains Leo. "I didn’t have money to hire someone to decorate, I just wanted to make it like an Italian home with a mom."

In 1994, Leo headed off on his own again and opened Leo Melina Ristorante de Mare at First and Union. There was singing, authentic Italian seafood dishes and access to one of the best rooftop patios in town. "The rooftop is great," says Leo, "but it was very difficult to serve there, being so far from the kitchen. But people loved it and thought we did a great job. The location was very successful, but we had someone who wanted to buy it. I said no a number of times, but they kept making offers. I finally sold it."

Over the past few years, the family (minus a sister living in Italy) has been running Mamma Melina’s. Now a big change has occurred—Melina and Pasquale have returned to Italy to retire a second time. "They left friends and family behind when they came here and it’s hard to recreate what you’ve accumulated at that point in your life," explains Leo.

Melina didn’t leave without giving mom advice—she urged the brothers to unite and start something else. They had too much manpower to take care of just one place. "We’re good Italian boys," laughs Leo. "We listen to mom. It was a no-brainer that we needed more to do; now we work too much!" The elder Varchettas stayed through the summer to help with the launching of Barolo, the new sophisticated Italian eatery in downtown Seattle. As advised, they’re doing it together, although Roberto generally runs Mamma Melina’s with Leo stopping in a few times a week, and Leo and Salvio running Barolo.

One thing that hasn’t changed is that they run the businesses hands on. "One of us is always there," says Leo. "People want to know a real person takes care of things. A restaurant isn’t just numbers and spreadsheets. We don’t do financial projections. We concentrate on our product and profits will come. You can’t ever lose sight of the fact that you are here to serve guests. People dine out because they expect something special. We do our best to provide special attention—food, service, atmosphere at a fair price."

"Our prices at Barolo are below average for a place like this and our wine mark-ups are below market," explains Leo. "It’s always been our philosophy. If your wines are expensive, a guy can buy a $40 bottle and feel like the cheapest guy on earth. We don’t want that." Barolo’s bottled wines range from $22 to $500. During happy hour, you can get a bottle of either red or white for $14.

The Varchetta family is big on creating a sense of community. "Barolo is a beautiful place with beautiful food," says Leo, "but it is not pretentious. People can be comfortable here." The look is urban, cool and sophisticated, yet it reconnects with the past; a contrast of old and new. "We have ultra-modern lights and dripping candles. Some tables are bare, some have linens. Just like Rome, you can have the Coliseum next to an ultra-modern structure."

A beautiful, two-inch thick, 18 foot-long walnut communal table was commissioned for the dining room. Originally, the table was planned for people dining alone or couples without reservations on busy nights. As it has turned out, nearly every night it’s booked for large groups. At each end, there is an oversized "Smoke Chair"—a custom, hand-made chair that is burned, coated with epoxy and painted. "Even though it is new, it reconnects wit the past," says Leo. "Once burned, it is brought back to life."

When it’s not too busy, Leo likes to let guests pick their own table as a way to increase their comfort. Maybe they’re in an upscale, linen-draped table mood. Maybe they want to be right near the front to watch other guests come and go, or maybe it’s a quiet, intimate experience they’re looking for. "It’s a rule of thumb that whatever table you give to someone, they’ll probably want a different one," laughs Leo. "Their eyes light up when they have a choice and aren’t told what to do by a Hitler hostess."

Food is clearly very personal for the Varchettas. All pasta is made by hand with organic, free-range eggs. "We did side-by-side tastings and the organic eggs are much more delicate, not so egg-y and they have a vibrant orange color which gives a wonderful presentation. We use the best ingredients we can find," says Leo. The name Barolo is about the bold, big, consistently beautiful wine and also the food of the region. They use snails, porcini mushrooms and truffles.

Again, understanding trends has helped create Barolo. Downtown is a neighborhood now with people choosing to move into condos and live in a more dense area. "We’re all getting closer together," says Leo. "We’ve hit the 300 million mark in the US, spaces are shrinking and people get used to the closeness. Tables in restaurants can be closer together. If you look at Europe, you can see the trend is to share more and be close. It’s very evident in the changes that have taken place in Seattle in the past five years."

Barolo is Leo’s personal vision of Italy; the old and the new, a representation of what you’d find in the old world, a showcase for authentic Italian food and culture. If the family’s personal history is indicative of the future, we should be enjoying what Barolo has to offer for years to come.

Photos courtesy of Barolo

Connie Adams/November 2006

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