Business Profile: Piazza Roma, Mohegan Lake
Piazza Roma is truly a family affair. Gina DiPaterio, owner of the restaurant located in the Cortlandt Towne Center in Cortlandt, truly enjoys making customers feel like they are a member of her family. Since opening Piazza Roma in 2004, DiPaterio and her husband Paul have built a loyal clientele who look forward to coming back time after time for classic Italian favorites. Along with her brother, Anthony, a partner in Piazza Roma, the trio has been delighting customers since day one.
“Taking care of people is really what it is all about. The hospitality industry is really just about making people feel welcome,” DiPaterio emphasized. Year in and year out, loyal customers have been enjoying the restaurant’s signature dish, Chicken Capricciosa, along with Veal Roma and a delicious thin crust pizza that DiPaterio describes as their ‘best kept secret’. It is no wonder that Piazza Roma has been such a hit in Cortlandt.
The DiPaterios also own Little Sorrento Italian Restaurant on Route 202, which too has been a favorite among the Cortlandt locals. The new restaurant was opened after it became clear Little Sorrento’s was just not big enough to accommodate its growing fan base.
To add to the recipe for success, hospitality and serving others traditional Italian fare is in DiPaterio ’s blood. In 1947, her grandfather opened the original Sorrento’s across from the Peekskill train station. The restaurant was then passed down to her parents, continuing its run in Peekskill. That restaurant will always hold a special place in DiPaterio’s heart as it is where four generations of her family worked and where she met Paul when he worked there as a chef.
It is that same family atmosphere that the DiPaterios were looking to create when they first set out in the restaurant industry twenty three years ago when Little Sorrento’s opened its doors. Piazza Roma has followed suit, though DiPaterio is quick to note that while the restaurant is a great family destination, it is also the perfect choice for a cozy dinner for two. The space also boasts a second floor bar with fifteen barstools and a handful of booths, creating another room in itself.
Additionally, Piazza Roma has onsite catering in their banquet room, which serves as the perfect locale for small weddings, bridal and baby showers, christenings, communions, birthdays and other family parties.
“You become the family caterer,” DiPaterio said with a laugh. “First it’s the bridal shower, then the baby shower, then the christening and communion.”
Repeat customers are treated to the same service they have enjoyed throughout Piazza Roma’s time at the Cortlandt Towne Center, as well as a constant string of improvements. DiPaterio believes that in order to remain successful in this industry, Piazza Roma has to ‘keep things fresh’. She values her grandfather’s words of wisdom to this day, words that encourage the family to “constantly make sure food is fresh, keep the restaurant clean, and keep a smile on your face”.
Those words have not only rung true for the DiPaterios, but for the 65 people they employ between Piazza Roma and Little Sorrento. The DiPaterio’s oldest son, as well as her sister, is also in on the action at Little Sorrento. Of the employees currently working at Piazza Roma, half of them have been there since their 2004 opening, truly becoming a part of the extended DiPaterio family.
“If they’re not related to me, they’ve worked here so long that we consider them part of our family”, DiPaterio explained. “We work hard and play hard. We have fun together.”
That’s not to say that Piazza Roma is just about having fun with family and friends. The staff at Piazza Roma is constantly working to accommodate all the tastes and likes of each customer.
“We work hard, no question,” DiPaterio said. “You don’t stay around this long without pleasing people.”
Piazza Roma is located in the Cortlandt Town Center at 3131 E. Main Street in MoheganLake. For more information call (914) 528-0800 or visit www.piazza-roma.com.
Little Sorrento Restaurant is located in the Parkside Corner Plaza at3565 Crompond Road in Cortlandt Manor. For more information about that eatery, call 914-736-6767 or visit www.littlesorrento.com.
By Aileen Collins
