You see, he's not just a pool hall stud after all....

Restaurant the second for couple —and maybe not the last by André Ward, special to the Record-Journal

SOUTHINGTON — Hus­band and wife Barry De Paolo and Cheryl Moran are glad they own Bonterra Italian Bistro — it’s their chance to spend their days together. “If I weren’t a part of it I would never get to see him,” said Moran with a laugh. The two have very different backgrounds in the business — Moran got hooked while bar­tending her way through law school, and De Paolo got his start early. De Paolo was bar­tending at his father’s restau­rant, Hitchcock Station in Southington, when he got his first taste of life as a chef. “My father threw an apron at me and said OK, you’re in the kitchen now,” he recalled. It didn’t take much more for De­Paolo to fall in love with the in­dustry, and 20 years as a chef would follow. He worked at Hard Rock Café and as the cor­porate chef for Planet Holly­wood, opening up restaurants in London, Spain and Indone­sia. “The travel was amazing,” De Paolo said. In 2001, the couple made the move to Southington and opened up Anthony Jack’s Woodfire Grill, which would quickly become one of the town’s most popular restau­rants.

Last year, De Paolo was approached with an offer to open up another restaurant a stone’s throw away from An­thony Jack’s in a new space be­ing made available. He and Moran were excited, but won­dered what they could offer in a separate experience.
“If I did do it, what could I do that would be different?” De­Paolo said. “So we decided that Southington could use another Italian restaurant.” Owning two restaurants in a span of 100 yards has offered unique challenges. “People seem to eat out 3-4 days a week now,” De Paolo said. “But if we do compete with someone, we hope we don’t compete with ourselves.” The two restaurants have many of the same cus­tomers, and De Paolo and Moran often spend their days going from one place to the other. Bonterra’s cuisine is Italian in name, but incorporates wider Mediterranean influences, of­fering dishes such as butternut squash ravioli and grilled scal­lop risotto. De Paolo is especial­ly proud of the wine/private party room which offers audio­visual capabilities and always seems to be booked. When the summer comes, the two will open up the patio area for out­door use, providing diners with a view of the town green.

Both De Paolo and Bonterra’s chef, Eddie Dwyer, lived in New York and were struck with the city’s progressive approach to sustainable foods. So they are trying to stay ahead of the curve with Bonterra, offering organic wines as well as beer and vodka. The restaurant’s pasta is also made in house, and almost nothing is frozen.
For most people, owning two restaurants would be more than enough, but De Paolo and Moran aren’t ready to cry uncle just yet. “We’ve thrown around some ideas for another one,” said Moran with a smile. “Never say never,” De Paolo said. “If we were to open up an­other restaurant, it would have to complement the other ones and be the right piece to the puzzle. But it’s fun to keep building the team.” “It’s like having kids,” Moran said. “The first one’s tough, the second one you get used to it a little more, and then after that it’s easy.”

Bonterra is located at 98 Main St. in Southington and is closed Mondays. It is open 11:30 a.m.–9:30 p.m. Tuesdays through Thursdays, 11:30 a.m.­10 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, and 4 p.m.-8 p.m. on Sundays. The restaurant’s chef, Eddie Dwyer, shared a recipe for parpadelle with us. (see Wednesday's R-J)