I drew this the other night thinking about how much mom loved eating at @pagliaccisvic. We used to split a big bowl of the Bicycle Thief and eat baskets of the free savoury bread. I think mom loved going there because eating all this delicious food while sitting shoulder to shoulder with the other patrons in the dim ambience while listening to the live quartet play felt like something out of a movie! I remember she told me that her friends, who were well into their 80’s, would still dine there weekly and insist on taking the leftover bread home! 🤤🥖
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Aside from my own happy memories of stuffing my face with pasta, Pagliacci’s is a business I truly admire. I remember reading a few years ago in @eatmag about how Solomon Siegel, the third generation family owner, was updating the restaurant but painstakingly ensuring that none of the charm changed. My favourite change was that he brought wine on tap! When the pandemic first hit, I was impressed to see how quickly they pivoted to delivery only and offering take-home cocktail and grocery kits. They’ve temporarily taken over the vacant store next door to expand their socially distanced dining space. I’ve been so happy to see that live music is continuing too!