海角社区app

Carbonara: Old School Italian brings Southern Italy to Ballston

Carbonara: Old School Italian & Wine Bar in Ballston, Virginia, is billed as an old-school Italian restaurant, with everything made in-house, including fresh pasta daily, Sicilian pizza, baked Italian dishes and seafood. Classics on the menu are beef carpaccio, linguini Cardinale, Chicken Cacciatore and stuffed cannoli. (Courtesy Connor Reed)

Northern Virginia restaurateur Mike Cordero, whose first restaurant job was making meatballs at an Italian restaurant in New York City at age 15, has opened in Ballston.

As the name implies, Cordero is going back to his roots as an old-school Italian restaurant, with everything made in-house, including fresh pasta daily, Sicilian pizza, baked Italian dishes and seafood. Classics on the menu are beef carpaccio, linguini Cardinale, Chicken Cacciatore and stuffed cannoli.

Cordero Hospitality, which includes his sons Nick and Anthony, signed a 20-year lease for the 4,000-square-foot space at 3865 Wilson Blvd. in the Ballston Gateway Building in 2022. It was initially expected to open last summer, but construction, permitting and inspection delays pushed the opening back. It officially opened March 18.

Carbonara includes a 1,500-square-foot outside patio, two al fresco bars, and a wine list from all regions of Italy. The see-through wine rack holds more than 1,000 bottles.

Live entertainment some nights will include traditional Italian music.

鈥淚 put my heart into Carbonara to create a new menu concept that features old school cuisine that reflects my early years as an Italian chef. I worked closely with my sons on this project, and instilled my passion for cooking Italian cuisine,鈥 Cordero said.

Cordero Hospitality鈥檚 other restaurants include Taco Rock, Don Tito, Don Taco, Barley Mac, Rockwood, and Bronson Bier Hall.

Get breaking news and daily headlines delivered to your email inbox by signing up here.

漏 2024 海角社区app. All Rights Reserved. This website is not intended for users located within the European Economic Area.

Jeff Clabaugh

Jeff Clabaugh has spent 20 years covering the Washington region's economy and financial markets for 海角社区app as part of a partnership with the Washington Business Journal, and officially joined the 海角社区app newsroom staff in January 2016.

Federal 海角社区app Network Logo
Log in to your 海角社区app account for notifications and alerts customized for you.