Wayne and Kendele Sieve had a hit on their hands from the start with Noto, an Italian restaurant in St. Peters that’s seen notable chefs like Josh Poletti, Alex Herman and now Justin McMillen at the helm. The establishment regularly sells out reservations, so it was no surprise when the Sieves announced plans for a companion to the restaurant: Bacaro, a cicchetti bar based on their travels to Venice, which opened in early 2024. The restaurant quickly took on a life of its own, as the Sieves worked to blend the trendy Venetian dining style, which centers around snacks or small plates, with the preferences of their customers.
The new cicchetti bar on the lower level of Noto gives customers a new element of Italian culture to explore, with an atmosphere designed around the owners’ travels to Italy.
Then came a Forbes writeup in early October that highlighted one of bar manager Travis Shook’s cocktails: The cacio e pepe Martini, an inventive riff on the classic. Two days later, the Sieves were hit with a different sort of writeup: a cease-and-desist letter from another Bacaro in a different state. “So, I reached out to my lawyer … I just really wanted to get ahead of it,” Kendele Sieve says. “This is our concept; I want this name. This is what we discovered in Venice – they call [traditional Venetian wine bars] bacari in the plural, and the singular is bacaro.” Ultimately though, the Sieves knew it made the most sense to change the establishment’s name.
Bormio.
Jacklyn Meyer
With the moniker so closely tied to the cuisine, the change gave the Sieves a new opportunity to experiment outside the realm of the Venetian dining style they had modeled Bacaro on. “We’ve been evolving our menu since opening as a response to the people in the community, our neighborhood,” Kendele adds. “We wanted to share our experience, but the ‘small bites’ concept was just a struggle for people who wanted more of a meal.” Over time, the bar’s menu of exclusively small bites has shifted to small bites and larger dishes, transforming it into more of a traditional restaurant. Customers have responded in kind, packing the house below as much as they do above at Noto.
Jacklyn Meyer
After much research and debate, a new name presented itself, showcasing a different region of Italy: Bormio, named after a town in Northern Italy. The concept will follow the name, showcasing cuisine from the Alpine region, a blend of Northern Italian, Swiss, Austrian, Slovenian and German fare. The Sieves’ interest was first sparked in April 2024 during a wine dinner featuring Klaus Lentsch Estate Winery, where wines from Northern Italy’s Alto Adige region were showcased. “From there, we got involved in mountain cuisine, which is really fascinating,” Kendele says. “Klaus [Lentsch] is a fourth-generation winemaker from the South Tyrol area, which is a bit north of Bormio. He was telling us about Norbert Niederkofler, a three-Michelin star chef from the Italian Alps; he’s been instrumental in introducing Alpine cuisine to a wider audience.”
Jacklyn Meyer
Bormio will build on a foundation of Alpine cuisine, which relies heavily on proteins, cheeses, breads and seasonal fruits and fresh herbs from the region. The Sieves will begin rolling out the new menu in January, adding dishes to the menu as they continue research on the cuisine, with a full rotation to the new menu by March 2025. The menu will be complemented by beverages from Shook, including German-style beers, wines from Swiss and German vintners and more. “This is ultimately what Bormio will look like,” Kendele says. “We’re going to feature dishes from the Alpine Crest. We’ll definitely still do aperitivo, but we’ll also bulk up the menu and do more entrées to make it a concept more like a restaurant.”
Jacklyn Meyer
In the interim, the Sieves are celebrating the season with a holiday pop-up, which gives the staff time to research and plan for the format shift. As for the future, the Sieves are looking forward to seeing what Bormio can become for the community who has supported them from the start. “I think it’s going to be awesome,” Kendele says. “We love new ideas and challenges, and we didn’t just want to do a simple name change if the current community was wanting more. We can do exactly that with Bormio.”
Stay tuned for a first look at the new concept’s food and beverage menu in the months to come.
For updates and more information, follow Bormio on Instagram and Noto (just above Bormio) on Instagram.
Bormio (formerly Bacaro), 5105 Westwood Drive, St. Peters, Missouri, 636-244-0874, bacarostl.com
Dining and Cooking