All’antico Vinaio, a rapidly growing chain of sandwich shops that originated in Italy in 1991, is preparing to open a new location at 316 Santa Monica Blvd, formally the site of Trejo's Tacos.
This marks the third Los Angeles location for the Florence-based firm, following outlets in Koreatown and Venice and co-owner Tanya Bastianich Manuali confirmed to the Daily Press that she hopes to have the delicatessen-style sandwich store open by the second quarter of 2025.
“When it’s literally translated, All’antico Vinaio means ‘the ancient wine merchant ‘and it actually started in the Tuscany region of Italy. Our partner, Tommaso Mazzanti’s family has been running it for decades,” Manuali said.
“Originally it was a small shop where, in Italy, where the workers would go get their Merenda (an Italian snack that’s typically eaten in the mid-morning or mid-afternoon) you know, so obviously workers, manual, physical laborers would get up early in the morning, and at 10 o'clock they had a Miranda, whether it was a mortadella sandwich in Tuscany, obviously with Tuscan prosciutto and a glass of wine,” she said, adding, “And it’s still there and there are often very long lines outside. There’s a lot of Americans studying in Florence and we find that they get nostalgic and it often represents a little taste of home.”
The brand currently has seven outlets in New York, including Broadway and Brookfield Place, along with downtown Las Vegas and soon to be a total of three in Los Angeles. There’s even one at Dubai International Airport and this incredible expansion has mostly been within the last three years according to Manuali, evidently bucking the trend of other chains, where many outlets nationwide were forced to close following the pandemic.
“My brother and I own restaurants in the US, separate, full sit down, full service, some of them Michelin star, white service, table cloth restaurants, but this concept had no presence until two years ago,” Manuali said.
The brother that Manuali mentioned is Joseph Bastianich, an American restaurateur, author and television personality. He, along with his mother, sister and business partner, co-owns over 30 restaurants in four countries, including Osteria Mozza in Los Angeles. They, along with Mazzanti, make up the team behind All’antico Vinaio.
What makes this chain appealing, among many things, is the rustic-Italian-aesthetic meets New-York-deli-decor. Each outlet is designed to continue the theme as much as possible, given varying factors with each one. Dark wooden floors and dark wooden beams frame the painted white brick wall finished with wrought iron fittings. In most outlets, a full glass frontage is complemented by the equally impressive glass deli counter that chills every one of your favorite fresh Italian meats and cheeses.
“Each location is a little different just because of the layout of the space, but we have our refrigerated counter where the sandwiches are custom made for our customers and that's in every shop. And depending on the space, there's always a wooden rail to eat your sandwich on along the sides of the shop. And if there's enough room, we have some tables,” Manuali said.
“We're on Abbot Kinney in Venice already and in Koreatown and it’s the same decor throughout, but they're two very different stores because Koreatown is quite a small space and in Venice we have some outdoor seating, which people love,” Manuali said, adding, “And it really has become very Italian. It's become an area where even at four or 5pm, people come and they do what's called an apericena in Italian. So it's like an aperitivo dinner where they get a sandwich, or maybe they split a sandwich with a friend, and they get either a spritz or a wine or a beer, and they actually make it like a cocktail hour.”
According to Manuali, the bread used is schiacciata, which is different to focaccia, because it’s uniquely Tuscan. Another popular sandwich shop, Bread Head on Montana offers focaccia based sandwiches, so fans of Italian street food in Santa Monica are soon to be spoilt for choice.
“Sometimes focaccia is higher and a little drier,” Manuali said. “Instead, schiacciata has a lower profile, and it's crispy on the outside and a little chewy on the inside. It’s a little bit like a New York bagel, in a certain sense. It's very particular, and we make our schiacciata fresh every single day for every store, and so that is really important. And it's baked and then the final process of baking happens right before we make your sandwich. It's like the last four minutes of baking, just so you get a hot, lovely sandwich.”
In fact, this will be the only specialty sandwich shop in the downtown area, going someway in relieving a desperate shortage of midday bread-based snacks. Only Wexler’s Deli and Bay Cities Italian Deli & Bakery currently exist to provide that essential service.
More information can be found at allanticovinaiousa.com.
scott.snowden@smdp.com
