Chef Joseph Iannaccone has worked at three Michelin-starred restaurants in his young career and now, as owner and executive chef of a Connecticut restaurant, he’s hoping they’ll come here at some point to get a taste.
“It would be nice if they came to Connecticut. I’m going to work on that,” he said. “It would be amazing. They usually go to bigger cities where there’s a lot around.”
Iannaccone, 29, is now celebrating the one-year anniversary of his successful Casanova, a creatively inspired modern Italian restaurant located in New Haven at 278 Park St.
He’s quite familiar with the industry, as his family owns some of the best known Connecticut restaurants.
His proud father, Gennaro Iannaccone owns the acclaimed Goodfellas in New Haven and more recently opened Drea’s Branford, named for his wife, Andrea. An aunt owns the popular Bin 100 in Milford and an uncle and cousin own Ristorante Luce in Hamden.
The younger Iannaccone started as a youngster breading chicken cutlets and baking cookies with his grandmother, then worked with his dad.
Chef Joseph Iannaccone in his restaurant, Casanova, now celebrating its first year of success (Courtesy)
“I’m proud of him is an understatement,” said Gennaro Iannaccone. “My son Joe is a wonderfully talented chef whose passion for food has taken him from the classrooms of the Culinary Institute of America to some of the finest Michelin-starred restaurants.”
The elder Iannaccone said those experiences helped shape his son’s vision and inspire him.
“Joe’s cuisine is a fresh, modern interpretation of Italian cooking—creative and sophisticated, yet approachable and comforting. Every dish reflects his training, talent, and love for hospitality,” Gennaro Iannaccone said.
The younger Iannaccone, an East Haven High School graduate, has worked at three Michelin starred restaurants, Le Bernardin, in New York City, The French Laundry in California and Crown Shy, also in NYC. Then he got “corporate” experience at Le Zoo in Florida, he said.
Between jobs he returned to Connecticut and worked with his dad.
Casanova Restaurant (Courtesy)
When he decided it was time to open this first restaurant he looked at the former Tarry Lodge in New Haven, owned by Yale and “fell in love with the architecture,” He said it’s “architecturally amazing” with “strong bones.” He leases the property from Yale.
“I’m bringing in a little bit of everyone I have worked for to the menu,” he said. “I just like that I can be creative. It’s as if I’m a painter.”
He offers some Italian classics such as spaghetti and meatballs, chicken parmigiana, Margarita pizza, but most of the menu is, “modern Italian with a twist.”
The pasta is made daily in house.
Casanova Restaurant. (Alejandro Villacorta)
Casanova Restaurant. (Alejandro Villacorta)
Casanova Restaurant (Courtesy)
Casanova Restaurant (Courtesy)
Casanova Restaurant (Courtesy)
Chef Joseph Iannaccone in his restaurant, Casanova, now celebrating its first year of success (Courtesy)
Chef Joseph Iannaccone in his restaurant, Casanova, now celebrating its first year of success (Courtesy)
Owner and executive chef Joseph Iannaccone at Casanova and his fiance, Leah Coppola. They will be married in Italy. (Courtesy)
Casanova Restaurant. (Alejandro Villacorta)
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Casanova Restaurant. (Alejandro Villacorta)
Some of the menu “twists” include Caramelle pasta, little pockets of pasta stuffed with sweet potato filling, topped with sage brown butter and crispy smoked prosciutto.
Also, there’s also a pork chop Parmigiano with vodka sauce, burrata cheese filling , baby basil (it has a different taste than full grow basil) and crispy prosciutto.
One online reviewer who had the pork chop wrote, “That very well may have been one of the best meals of my life!! The food was obviously to die for, but the ambiance and level of hospitality was also beyond elite. Couldn’t recommend this place more – can’t wait to be back!”
They also have steak, trout and more. But no salmon, because that’s ordinary so easy to find at other restaurants, he said.
A big menu hit, he said, are the truffled deviled eggs with fresh truffle in the filling and a little gold leaf on top. They don’t cut the eggs, but rather suck out the yolk and put it back in, he said.
The menu changes seasonally and even the desserts have a twist.
There is no cannoli, yummy as they are, he said, and as one might expect because again, predictable.
They have a Basque cheesecake with a creamy texture almost like warm butter with a blueberry compote with frozen whipped cream on top. The Tiramisu is made with house made sponge cake and finished with fresh, grated chocolate.
They also have interesting pizzas.
The attire at the restaurant is casual, even shorts are permitted, he said, though the decor is impressive.
“We want people to come to the restaurant for every occasion,” he said. “We could be compared to a New York style restaurant.”
Casanova seats 70 inside and 30 outside in a parklet.
He said the walls are dark, the tables white, the plates are dark-colored, the floors are white and there are bright orange couches and different color book cases.
The elder Iannaccone who has owned 14 restaurants in his lifetime, described his son’s restaurant this way: “His restaurant is intimate and charming, offering a cozy dining experience where every guest feels welcome. During the warmer months, the outdoor dining area provides the perfect setting to relax, enjoy great food, and soak in the atmosphere.”
A large portrait of Giacomo Casanova, an Italian writer, adventurer and ladies man is painted on the wall.
He and his fiancé, Leah Coppola, who plan to marry in Italy, decided on the name Casanova and the book theme because they thought it would appeal to the Yale crowd, he said.
Owner and executive chef Joseph Iannaccone at Casanova and his fiance, Leah Coppola. They will be married in Italy. (Courtesy)
Instead of calling the drink menu just that, it’s called, “The Library.”
He describes the vibe as both comfort and vibrancy.
“We’re a while mix of things,” Iannaccone said. “It’s been very good, very busy.”
They plan to open more restaurants, but, “I can’t tell you where and when,” he said.