Kickstarter

 You know how people from the Mediterranean live longer with their wonderful foods that not only taste amazing, but provide long lasting sustenance?  

     You know how buying local can help sustain farms, small business and a community?

     You know how good it feels to walk into your own small neighborhood restaurant where you can be assured of really great food, warm service and the nods from the people you know around the room?

     Well, we want to bring those concepts to our community.  Al & Nancy from Al Ducci's Italian Pantry of over 20 years partners with Paul Kropp, one of the the most exquisite chefs of the area to bring you Al Ducci di Notte - a small, neighborhood trattoria.  

     All too often, you can't depend on dining out to get freshly prepared, non-processed cuisine.  Much of what you are being served could have been processed elsewhere prior to even reaching the restaurant.  That processed food has extra ingredients - ingredients that help keep the food longer, helps it freeze better, etc.  You don't know what extra ingredients lies upon your plate that you can't see.  You wouldn't believe the amount of sodium you're getting when you eat such processed foods!  Plus - who are you supporting? Certainly not any of your local small business owners or farmers - more like big agra and corporate food houses.

     Al Ducci di Notte will be different.  We will offer ingredients purchased locally as much as possible and prepared fresh by Chef Paul Kropp - wait until you read some of the reviews of his cuisine!  Foods prepared with wonderful olive oils, fresh cheeses, freshly made pasta, local produce and meats, fresh seafood and who can resist fresh bread! 

     Al Ducci di Notte will be primarily characterized by its mozzarella bar and antipasta bar.  The offerings will change frequently - at least every week -  so you can't get bored and so you can be assured that everything is fresh.  The cheese?  Of course, the mozzarella cheese will be hand made by Al - an artisan that has been making cheese for over 30 years!

   On a very large scale, Mario Batali’s Eataly in New York has become a tourist destination as well as one of the most popular places for city locals.
Al Ducci’s will follow the Eataly concept (on a smaller scale!), and adding a trattoria next to the store is a major step in such a direction.
The trattoria will house a mozzarella bar as well as a selection of antipastos and the menu will offer a limited, quality selection of ‘secondi’ plates. Wine can be purchased at the store and the servers will open and serve the wine with a small cork fee. 

   The menu will change almost on a daily basis and will utilize what the chef is able to find fresh at the farms as well as plates made in the store, both for sale and for the evening. By changing the antipasto and secondi offerings, guests will be encouraged to visit on a regular basis. If a guest comes in on a Tuesday, they will find a different menu on Friday. 

   At the center will be a community table, so integral to a true trattoria. Along with several smaller, intimate tables, the community table will help to encourage a jovial, familial atmosphere. 

 
   After the first year, Al Ducci di Notte will begin an expansion plan by offering cooking classes as well as more catering and seating in the restaurant. Plans include the ability to expand into the third space with classroom space, more specialty food products, prepared foods, a gelato bar, coffee and even Italian cookware.

   We are looking for funding so that we can fix up the building on the outside, get a hood for grilling and frying, and finally, to outfit much of the inside of the restaurant.  

Below are some pictures of the amazing staff, Al & Nancy, Paul and, of course, Zeke and Lola!