by TM Petaccia

Mano Bella Artisan Foods continues to be on the fast growth path. The maker of fresh pastas, dry pastas, and a myriad of other Italian artisan foods has signed to take over the former Jimmy Pearls space inside The Market at 7th Street — moving from its previous 7th Street kiosk space and pasta bar. The refit is expected to be completed by mid-September.

In a little over four years, the husband-and-wife team of Raffaele and Madison Patrizi have transformed their business from a pop-up vendor at farmers markets to a 45-person operation with two brick-and-mortar restaurants while still maintaining a farmers market presence.

“We have needed a lot more space than we currently have here at 7th Street,” Madison Patrizi says. “This opportunity to move into a bigger space gives us more of a clean slate so we can provide a more consistent experience that our guests have at South Park.”

The widely open kitchen space will allow customers to see how many of the handmade and extruded pastas are made — as well as items like mozzarella — which excites 2023 UPPY Food Artisan of the Year, Raffaele Patrizi. “I really want to show the whole process,” he says. “I don’t have anything to hide in the kitchen. I just want to show people good food.”

The new expanded space will allow Mano Bella to offer many of the dishes and amenities now offered at its SouthPark location. The most significant change is the new space has a vented hood, which will allow baked goods to be made on the premises. Previously, breads and other baked goods were transported from the South Park location. The addition of the hood also means the addition of fried foods to the 7th Street menu, like fried calamari and fried ravioli.

“We’ll now be offering about 80 percent of the SouthPark menu at 7th Street,” Raffaele says, “but we also want to keep a few things exclusive to each location, as well as rotate in seasonal dishes.” One item exclusively at 7th Street is the Pasta alla Ruota — pasta finished in a large wheel of Parmigiano Reggiano. Some of the exclusive items to remain at SouthPark are the fried carbonara balls and trout crudo.

However, the Patrizis will be bringing their popular SouthPark spritzes-on-tap to 7th Street — Aperol, housemade limoncello, and a seasonal offering.

“We’re really hoping 7th Street can be a little bit more self-sufficient and self-sustaining so we can focus on smoothing out our lives,” Madison says.

Along with the change in location at 7th Street, there will also be a change in operating hours — at both locations. The restaurants will be open Monday-Saturday (previously closed on Monday and open Sunday).

The Patrizis’ expansion plans aren’t over. Mano Bella recently launched a monthly Pasta Club, offering artisan pastas and other curated items with recipe cards, including items not found at either location, for $70/month. There will be add-on items like wine and other exclusives at an additional cost. “It gives us an opportunity to easily share what Raffaele and I are passionate about,” Madison says.

Down the road, the Patrizis envision an even larger scale operation. The terms they use are “pasta brewery” and “pasta warehouse” — a large, open, casual space where customers can enjoy their pastas and other items in a more relaxed atmosphere.

But for now, once the new 7th Street space opens, the couple’s immediate plans boil down to one word.

“Rest,” says Madison.

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