Until Nov. 17, when you dine at Cucina Paradiso you might win a Vespa or a trip to Italy. But one thing that is guaranteed during the restaurant’s 30th anniversary celebration – you’ll get a good meal.
Owner Anthony Gambino and Operations Manager Mike Bouse
At the tender age of 17, Anthony Gambino opened his first restaurant. It wasn’t even the first foray into food service for the young man who grew up in Elmwood Park. For years he’d been shadowing his dad who owned Nancy’s Pizza locations. His place was Trattoria Pepino on North Avenue’s restaurant row. It was quick-service Italian.
“Our clientele would always tell us your food is excellent. Why don’t you make it a full-service restaurant?” Gambino said. “My intention was never to make that location full-service. The physical space really didn’t allow it.”
Still, he was intrigued by the idea and wanted to take a chance on something new. He searched for a location for a year, ultimately falling in love with a warehouse space at 814 North Blvd., Oak Park. Through the sweltering heat of the summer of 1995, Gambino and his crew worked to get the place ready to open.
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Chicken pistachio was a new take on nut crusted entrées.
“We were under construction, I remember being in a ladder, cleaning the light fixture from all the construction dust,” Gambino said. “A guy walks by the window. Walks in, says, ‘Wow, what a beautiful space you built. I sure hope you’re going to make it.’ I’m like, what do you mean? He goes, ‘I honestly don’t know who’s going to find you here. You’re off the beaten path.’”
This was before internet searches, Yelp reviews and social media recommendations.
“I didn’t make a comment back. I just thought to myself, wow, you know what? Man, am I going to prove this guy wrong!” Gambino said.
When the doors opened, diners discovered a more eclectic menu than in his other location. Many dishes, still on the menu, made their debut in the first months. Bacon wrapped dates was one.
Bacon-wrapped dates
“Couldn’t get anybody to eat a date. A date? Fried with bacon? Can’t keep them in stock today. Rustic salad, virtually from the beginning. Pasta is the penne arrosto with roasted peppers, ricotta cheese, marinara. Pistachio chicken, which was again 30 years ago, like, nuts? On a piece of chicken?” Gambino said. “When we started, the menu was handwritten, very limited. Six or seven pastas, six or seven entrees, some appetizers, some pizza. Very similar to what it is now.”
The restaurant was building a following. Six months after opening, it was named as one of the best restaurants in the city by Chicago Magazine. That and good reviews from the Wednesday Journal and the Chicago Tribune ensured that people didn’t have much trouble finding the location.
“I don’t want to say the rest is history,” Gambino said. “We’ve had some ups. We’ve had some downs.”
More on that later.
One positive is that staff has a habit of sticking around. Oak Parker Mike Bouse has been there since 2006.
Rustic salad
“We have an excellent team of people like Mike. Our general manager has been here over 20 years. Our kitchen managers, one’s been here 27 years.” Gambino said.
Bouse is now the director of operations, but he originally came in to handle chef duties for some off-site catering jobs, which he was doing for other companies too. Cucina Paradiso charmed him.
“I loved the space. I thought it was really cool. I like the vibe here,” Bouse said. “I was working kind of high-end catering on the North Shore. I was commuting to Lake Bluff for five days. It is a horrible commute.”
Bouse had only started to think about joining Cucina full-time when disaster struck. On his commute up north, his brother called and said: “Cucina burned last night. And I was like, no way,” Bouse recalled. “All the windows were broken out and the place was destroyed.”
A used linen bin, awaiting pickup outside the restaurant building, had been set on fire. The embers set the roof on fire, which collapsed into the kitchen. The building didn’t burn down, but the damage was extensive.
“Water damage, more water damage than smoke damage. But I mean, it was a low point in my life that was for sure,” Gambino remembers.
They had to gut the whole space and start over.
Penne arrosto
“It was very humbling how the community came out in droves,” Gambino said. “It was literally like a Friday night, every night for months. I mean, it sounds biased, but it’s definitely one of the best communities. They truly, truly support their businesses here. The community’s been supporting us for 30 years. That showed during COVID and after.”
To reflect that love back at its customers, Cucina Paradiso is offering an opportunity for diners to win a $100 gift card each week. Every chance will also go towards the grand prize drawings for the Vespa and a $5000 travel voucher on Nov. 17. The team hopes you’ll go to Italy, but there is no restriction, just their thanks.
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Dining and Cooking