In 2004, Italian chefs Salvatore Corea and Giusto Priola were among a group that created a New York restaurant that has become an institution. Named after the famed Roman dish, Cacio e Pepe not only served it as a signature but added a theatrical presentation, tossing the pasta and sauce in a hollowed-out cheese wheel tableside.
Their restaurant not only survived the pandemic but has led to a second Cacio e Pepe location on the Upper East Side. Corea, who serve as executive chef at both restaurants, and Priola tell La Cucina Italiana that besides being more convenient to where Corea lives with his wife and children, “The Upper East Side neighborhood was waiting for something new and Cacio e Pepe perfectly fits in the mood and vibe of this vibrant and elegant area of New York City. The clientele in the UES was ready for gourmet dishes rooted in the Italian traditions.”
Cacio e pepe at Cacio e Pepe.
The tableside preparation of the tonnarelli cacio e pepe—made with whole black peppercorns and pecorino—helped create the restaurant’s mystique, and also gave it new life when social media became popular and influencers delighted in capturing the unique version of cacio e pepe.
While it continues to be the restaurant’s calling card, the menu has always aimed to capture the best of modern Italian cooking, which Corea continues on the Upper East Side.
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Salvatore Corea (left) and Giusto Priola, owners of Cacio e Pepe's two Manhattan locations.
Other popular dishes making the trip uptown include Cacio e Pepe’s eggplant parmesan timballo, lasagna Bolognese, and a pasta preparation from Corea’s hometown Calabria, orecchiette with ‘nduja, cauliflower purée, and grated cacao nibs.
Priola, born and raised in Sicily, and also the owner of Cacio e Vino, a Sicilian restaurant in Manhattan, and his partner in Cacio e Pepe, say that they’re happy to have persevered through the pandemic, crediting their customers to supporting the restaurant and its staff. Now, they say, they’ve tapped into new clientele 70-plus blocks north of their original location, and 18 years later.
