Restaurant Road Trip: Aloi’s Ristorante Rigatoni

SHINNSTON, W.Va. (WBOY) — This week on Restaurant Road Trip, 12 News’ Makayla Schindler visits an Italian spot where family and food are at the heart of everything. From recipes passed down through generations, to a table that always has room for one more, you’ll feel like part of the family before the first bite.

While visiting Aloi’s Ristorante Rigatoni, it’s easy to see a restaurant rooted in family, as the walls are flooded with pictures of seven generations of loved ones and each item on the menu is dedicated to somebody. Owner and veteran John Aloi wants to show how family-oriented Aloi’s is by building a legacy with his family’s name.

Part of Italian tradition is passing down recipes from generation to generation. Aloi has many dishes that contain passed-down recipes, including his great-grandfather Papa Joe Manchin’s sausage, his great-grandmother’s and grandmother’s meatballs, along with his homemade sauce, and we can’t forget great-grandma Aloi’s almond galettes.

Now everything is made locally and fresh every day, and 12 News’ Makayla Schindler said that it all smells just as good as it tastes, with the smell lingering out into the parking lot upon arrival. She got to see the meats behind the scenes before she got to try them, and the restaurant gave her many options to try, including Papa’s Pepperoni Roll, a 12-inch sausage hoagie called The Roscoe, Mama Kay’s Rigatoni and Meatballs, and Uncle Donnie’s Rigatoni with sausage and peppers.

After taking a bite of the home-made medium hot sausage, she said it had just the right amount of spice. The spice with the flavor of the sauce was the perfect combination. Schindler added, “as Sam Aloi Sr., always says, if you leave hungry, it’s your own fault!”

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12 News spoke with owner John Aloi, who said that his favorite item on the menu is the rigatoni and meatball dish, explaining that he used to have that at his grandma’s house all the time growing up.

“We’re selling probably 140 of those a day. We’ve been open for eight days, and we’ve had about 2,000 customers so far. The Roscoe sandwich, if you like a sausage sandwich, it’s very popular. We did about 10,000 of those in Monongah in the three years we were open and we sell probably 40 of those a day here,” Aloi said.

You read Monongah right, John Aloi is not new to the food business, as he opened up “Papa Joe’s Famous Meats” in Monongah more than three years ago. While he was successful at that location, he was unable to expand and began looking for a new place to call home. About four months ago, he found the new location of his restaurant and began remodeling and renovating.

Aloi’s Ristorante Rigatoni opened its doors on Oct.16 of this year, and John decided to name the restaurant after his grandfather, Sam Aloi, Sr. and grandmother Frances Aloi.

Both sides of Aloi’s family were immigrants from Sicily and San Giovanni, Italy. He grew up eating Italian delicacies, and with there being a large population of Italian families in West Virginia, he felt it was the perfect opportunity to bring a taste of home to the mountain state.

John said that he’s been cooking since he was 10 years old and while in the military for nearly 26 years, he cooked and shared with others everywhere he went.

“Food is love. You take all day, from early in the morning to late at night, preparing food and then the family comes in and gets the experience. I would sit at the table as a kid with my grandma and roll meatballs. They’re in the oil, frying, you can smell that and the garlic—it’s just the whole thing, you know, you’re in love with the cooking process. It takes you back,” Aloi said.

Along with the food, Aloi also mentioned how everyone knows everyone and that 80% of the customers they have are people they already know. With new customers coming and getting to know them too, it’s almost like an extended family when you come to eat.

Not only do you leave with some new friends, but with a full belly and some leftovers. The portions are quite big and are brought out in to-go containers just in case you can’t finish them.

If you would like to try it yourself, Aloi’s Ristorante Rigatoni is located at 1121 Hood Avenue in Shinnston and is open Thursday through Saturday from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m., a well as Sunday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Updates from the business, as well as its menu, can be found on its Facebook page.

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