Marcello Ristorante
16 May 2011 Leave a Comment
This is the story of two brothers from Italy, who out of love for family and food, set out to live the American dream.
On a rainy Seattle night in June of 2011, I had the pleasure of meeting with forty-four year old year old Dario Magaletti who hails from a small town in Southern Italy known as Taranto. I have known Dario for approximately four years, but have never probed much into his past. Inspired by my love for his restaurant and an overall curiousity, I set out to get some answers.
Initially, and like most Americans, I imagined that Dario and his brother, Marcello, came from a romantic village in Italy where everybody knew each other and gathered together for large Italian family dinners every Sunday. I imagined Dario working odd jobs as a kid for the local mafia like Henry Hill did in the movie Goodfellas and that at some point in his teenage years, Dario had to leave his beloved Italy or face the consequences from a rival mob boss. As an American born and bred on too many Hollywood movies and reruns of The Godfather, it’s obvious my imagination had got the best of me. I mean, other than a one week vacation to Italy and too many mob movies, what did I know about Italy?
Taranto isn’t the romanticized version of Italy as most would think. According to Dario, his childhood home was rough and poor with only two police cars. And on a bi-weekly basis, Dario was beat up for his “milk money” (I got the impression that those were not the best years of his life). As an interesting side note, “Taranto is also the origin of the common name of the Tarantula spider family.” (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taranto) Hmmm, perhaps the venom isn’t just in the spiders.
After graduating high school and spending three years in the Italian Army studying medicine, Dario and his new American wife, Kelly, left for the Unites States in 1989.
Landing first in San Francisco they made a go at a new life until his wife suggested they relocate to Cleveland, Ohio where she was originally from. Cleveland’s intensely segregated neighborhoods left little room for a young couple to grow and flourish which again prompted another move, this time to Alaska in 1992.
A new life in Alaska didn’t last long, though, as Dario and Kelly had the fortune of visiting Seattle on a sunny day while en route to Alaska. The couple then decided to move to Seattle in 1993 where Dario enrolled at the University of Washington and earned his microbiology degree. Shortly thereafter, Dario and Kelly divorced.
Meanwhile, Dario’s younger brother Marcello had already been living in Seattle after finishing his architecture degree in Italy, and was excited to start a new life with his brother. In 1998 the two reunited after 15 years and in order to re-establish their bond, the brothers decided to start a business together.
In 2001, Marcello Ristorante was born.
Ten years later Dario and Marcello continue to run Marcello Ristorante and also live in the same house. Dario occasionally moonlights as a microbiologist at the University of Washington while Marcello has never practiced as an architect in the US. The brothers receive help from their mother and father (divorced when Dario was 6), Michele and Silvana, who take turns visiting for about six months out of the year. Michele, who doesn’t speak a word of English, enjoys his daily “routine,” as Dario calls it, which entails showing up early to the restaurant (it opens at 4pm) to meet with the delivery people. I got the impression that it gives Michele a sense of purpose while he’s in Seattle visiting. Dario also says that Michele is the most grumpy man he’s ever met, which I found midly amusing as I gazed upon the older Magaletti who seemed very sweet to me. I blame the language barrier. I was also amused to learn that when both Michele and Silvana are in town at the same time, they both reside in the guest area of Dario and Marcello’s home, while not speaking a word of Italian to each other. I guess the Italians not only have tempers, but the ability to hold grudges for 38 years.
Marcello Ristorante has experienced many successes since it’s inception, most notably a review from Seattle Times restaurant critic, Nancy Leson, who in her article “Dining is warm and wonderful at Marcello,” stated the following: “Foolish me. While I stayed home making minestrone, chicken Marsala with golden roasted potatoes and sautéed spinach and our “house special” spaghetti Bolognese, I could have been eating those very dishes in the company of the magnanimous Magalettis!” (http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/restaurants/2003850171_leson240.html). Oh, and let’s not forget that Ronald Reagan, Jr. recently dined there.
At forty-four years old Dario Magaletti seems content with the success of Marcello Ristorante and in my opinion has achieved the American dream, even if it’s slightly different my version as I wouldn’t still be living with my family. But I couldn’t help but feel a little envy and jealousy, as I was able to witness the love and respect they have for one another. And it seems right that they still live together, after all, isn’t that how they do it in the movies?
And finally, don’t try to beat up Dario for his milk money; he no longer carries cash.
