Today, foodservice industry partners Joe Cardinale and Joby Wetzel have opened an Italian wine shop and specialty food store in Columbia, S.C. Alimentari Don Luigi is opening next door to Cardinale’s popular Italian sandwich restaurant, Enzo’s.
Wetzel and Cardinale, who was sous chef at fine-dining restaurant Terra in West Columbia, teamed up in 2022 to open Bar Gran Sasso, also in Columbia, which they described as a “Venetian-inspired” restaurant and bar. The establishment has been closed for renovations since December.
Meanwhile, Cardinale and Wetzel are reportedly bringing their love of Italian food and wine to the new establishment, named after Cardinale’s great-grandfather. The pair built a following among local consumers through their operations at Enzo’s and Bar Gran Sasso, Cardinale told The Post and Courier.
“We offered Italian wines and lesser-known varietals, and the community trusted us,” Cardinale says. “Now we have all those ingredients, wines and knowledge here. It’s just a miniature restaurant.”
According to the Post and Courier, Alimentari Don Luigi will stock wines from across Italy, as well as gourmet and imported Italian grocery items such as pasta, sauces, Italian snacks and deli meats (including items featured in an Italian deli in New Jersey and Tennessee country ham on the bone).
The companies also plan to gradually introduce lesser-known items, such as products made from bones and organ meats, they told reporters.
The store is decorated with winemaking photographs and vintage winemaking equipment.
At Enzo’s, Cardinale has distinguished himself as an authentic Italian sandwich shop, offering a selection of hot and cold sandwiches under names like Uncle Louie and Gigi. The sandwiches aim to replicate the menu of Italian delis in the Northeast, featuring Italian cold cuts like prosciutto and Genoa salami, cheeses like provolone and fresh mozzarella, and traditional toppings like giardiniera, roasted red peppers, vodka sauce and pesto. Hot sandwiches include chicken cutlets and meatballs.
Bar Gran Sasso, on the other hand, focuses on more upscale Italian cuisine. Before it closed for renovation, its family-friendly Sunday supper included dishes like pastasciutta, spezzatino alla uva, chicken saltimbocca, and pork peperonata. The restaurant also hosted food and wine tastings featuring a variety of Italian snacks, cheeses, and wines.
According to the Post and Courier, Alimentari Don Luigi will also carry some of Bar Gran Sasso’s most popular dishes in its prepared food section.
“You can go somewhere and buy a nice bottle of wine, or you can go somewhere and buy a nice bottle of wine. [and get] “We want to prepare something tasty for dinner,” Wetzel says, “but we want the best of both worlds.”
