“Roadhouse Italiana” is how Chef Francesco Torre describes his forthcoming Forestville restaurant, Canneti.
Currently Executive Chef for Fish Restaurant in Sausalito, the Tuscan native has worked in critically-acclaimed restaurants from Italy and NYC to Napa and the North Bay. Taking inspiration from his homeland, along with a new-found passion for regional American cooking, the menu will revolve around local produce, cheeses and meats along with homemade pastas, salumi and pizzas. And good, strong espresso. “An Italian cannot live without good coffee,” Torre said.
He hopes to open in late August or September, taking advantage of the much-ballyhooed back patio of the former Mosaic Restaurant (which closed in 2010). The interior bar will be demolished to expand the kitchen.
It’s good news, the recent closures of Aioli Deli and Sarah’s Forestville Kitchen in Forestville, leaving some big openings in the Green Valley dining scene.
And the name? The restaurant takes its name from the Via de Canneti, a road Torre traveled to school as a child. “It reminds me of home,” said Torre.