New wine and grocery store will expose Columbia to 'actual Italian food' (2024)

COLUMBIA— Chefs who've worked atTerra,Enzo'sand Bar Gran Sassohave teamed up to establish Alimentari Don Luigi, a new Italian wine and grocery store that's slated to open on June 20 at 11 a.m.

Located in Suite C of 612 Whaley Street, Don Luigi's wooden-accented, chocolate-brown walls display over 120 unique bottles of wine— at least one, co-owners Joe Cardinale and Joby Wetzel said, from every region in Italy.

The store also featurespasta, jarred sauce, Italian snacks and a cold cuts section with imported provisions from across the country,from New Jersey Italian delis to a whole, bone-in Tennessee Country Ham.

The co-owners met while working at their respective culinary ventures— Wetzel as the sous chef of West Columbia's Terra and Cardinale as the owner of Italian sandwich shop Enzo's. They bonded over their mutual love of and fascination with Italian cuisine to establish the Venetian-style Bar Gran Sasso in August 2022.

Now, almost two years later, they are bringing some of their most popular dishes to the prepared foods section of Don Luigi, named after Cardinale's great-great grandfather. Cardinale believes the store's opening will "fill a gap in this city."

"You can go somewhere and get a nice bottle of wine or you can go somewhere (and get) something nice to prepare for dinner," said Wetzel. "But we want to have the best of both worlds."

Despite the store's wide selection, Cardinale emphasized the intentionality behind every stock item.

"There are no place fillers on the shelves," he said. "Everything here, we've enjoyed, tasted and tried regularly. We know everything we have in here, and we just want to share it."

With over 40 combined years of culinary experience, the pair are looking forward to sharing their expertise with shoppers in the greater Midlands area.

"We'll say, 'If this is the wine that you like, well, we have the pasta shape, the pasta sauce and the cheese to go with it,'" said Wetzel. "Here, we can have a better opportunity to showcase a lot of the things that we enjoy and that we think other people can enjoy, too."

Wetzel said the store, which is complete with traditional Italian winemaking photos and equipment, is an opportunity to educate patrons on the stories behind Don Luigi's products.

"A big part of what I've always felt when it comes to food is teaching people," Wetzel said. "Where we're at, in 2024 with the food in Columbia, people are a lot more receptive to that."

Their confidence on selling these authentic Italian provisions, Cardinale said, stems from their history of slowly introducing dining guests to these products at Bar Gran Sasso.

"We got them to drink Italian wines and lesser-known varietals, and the community put trust in us," said Cardinale. "Now, we have all of those ingredients, wine and knowledge here — this is just a broken-down version of the restaurant."

From the Don Luigi stockroom, Wetzel and Cardinale said they hope to feature more "avant-garde" items in the future. On their list includes "Cucina Povera," or "Poor Cuisine," which can include complex dishes made from the lesser-used parts of an animal, like bones and organ meat.

"Things like that, most people kind of shy away from, but maybe down the line, that's something people might show some interest in," said Wetzel. "They just need a little bit of education and that push forward."

Both co-owners want Don Luigi to be aplace for anyone who is curious about Italian cuisine— not just foodies and culinary experts.

"We're not trying to be exclusive or esoteric to the point where Joe Every-man can't come in and find something that he'd be happy to go home with," said Wetzel. "The broader range of people that we can reach, the better for everybody."

For those who have followed Cardinale and Wetzel's culinary careers, or who are looking to bring some of Bar Gran Sasso's most popular dishes home, the co-owners believe Don Luigi's opening will get them closer than ever.

"Joby's not going to make you a Mezzi Rigatoni Bolognese here, but you can buy the pasta and the sauce to put it together at home," said Cardinale.

"And I'll walk you through it," added Wetzel.