After a stint in Selden Market, the focacceria is now located on Monticello Avenue.
NORFOLK, Va. — If you’re craving authentic Italian cuisine, look no further than Norfolk’s Amale Tre Focacceria, which recently moved to a new location in Norfolk’s Freemason neighborhood. With deliciously crafted focaccia, homemade pasta and other Italian classics, Amale Tre Focacceria officially reopened its doors last week, offering a taste of Italy right here in Hampton Roads.
The man behind the culinary creations, Gabriele Pianezze, brings a piece of his home country to the Mermaid City. A native Italian, Pianezze believes that cooking is about passion. “In cooking, there is no technique,” he told us. “It comes from your heart. Whatever you decide.”
Together with his wife, Pianezze founded Amale Tre Focacceria, the name a tribute to their three daughters.
As the first focacceria in Virginia, Amale Tre Focacceria offers a rare dining experience in the region. Pianezze said he hopes the eatery becomes an iconic spot in Norfolk. He remembered, as a child in Milan, eating focaccia often. “When you were a kid and you were walking to school, everyone was getting focaccia for a snack,” Pianezze recalls.
Pianezze made Norfolk his home over three decades ago. Though he initially started his journey to the United States in New York, it was Norfolk — with its green spaces and friendly atmosphere — that drew him in. He fondly remembers the first time he saw a squirrel in the city, which left a lasting impression on him. “It was very special,” he laughed.
Looking forward, Pianezze is hopeful that his daughters will one day be able to reflect on the legacy their parents built. “When my daughters drive around here and say ‘My mom and dad opened this 50 years ago,’ that will be nice, very, very nice,” he said.
Amale Tre Focacceria held its grand reopening last Friday and is now open for business at 440 Monticello Ave Suite B, Norfolk. It’s open each day except for Sunday at 11. The eatery will offer weekend brunch starting next month.
This piece is part of 13News Now’s weekly Friday Flavor segment. If you have an idea of where Marta Berglund should visit next, send her an email at mberglund@13newsnow.com or message her on social media.