ARE you fond of authentic Italian food or want to try to taste one? We know one place where you can truly be at ease.
The La Toscana along Arellano Street, Poblacion District in Davao City is an authentic Italian restaurant owned and managed by a pure-blood Italian named Piero Lucarini. They served all types of Italian food ranging from fresh pasta such as Tagliatelle and Pappardelle, ravioli, risotto which is an Italian rice dish to pizza margherita and romana.
La Toscana, which is named after a region in Italy called Tuscany where Lucarini was born, had been serving authentic Italian food to Dabawenyos and guests for almost 16 years already after it was established in Quirino Avenue in 2001. After gaining many loyal customers, the owner decided to move the establishment in Arellano St. to cater more customers by providing bigger restaurant building and parking spaces.
The story of how Lucarini came to the Philippines and came up with a business is a story worth telling. His journey to the Philippines began in 1981 when he decided to engage in a business in Manila. He was only 33 that time. He used to export products such as furniture and Capiz lampshade and export it to Italy.
But how did his business shifted from exporting products to putting up a restaurant? Passion, that was what Lucarini said.
Driven by passion and coming from a family of chefs, Lucarini pledged full-time commitment in his restaurant business. But that story is not as easy as it appears as there were actually a series of coincidences that led him to decide to put up the business.
Lucarini said it all started when a priest he knew introduced him to James Lee, owner of Toril LCY Trading Corp which operates Citi Hardware all over the country. He said Lee is fond of Italian products.
After meeting Lee, Lucarini became a supplier of Italian products to him and this soon blossomed into a wonderful friendship.
So Lucarini then decided to put up a restaurant just to have a venue for his hobby, which is, cooking. And just in time, an Italian who owned a restaurant in Quirino decided to sell the resto and so Lucarini decided to grab the opportunity to purchase the building and start his own business.
As of the present, La Toscana continues to blossom and had even managed to expand by putting up another branch in Marilog District, the La Toscana El Cielo. La Toscana snack bars are also available in two Citi Hardware branches in Buhangin, Davao City and Tagum City.
How authentic is authentic?
The fact that the owner of the resto is a pure Italian, it is inarguable that he knows what authentic Italian cuisine really is. But aside from that, Lucarini said the ingredients for the food he serves in the resto are bought from Italy. Two Italian businessmen from Cebu and Manila also supply him ingredients from Italy.
“I use olive oil from Italy. I use fresh tomatoes every day. I use very fresh ingredients,” Lucarini said.
“Everything (I serve here) is produced from the kitchen,” Lucarini shared, emphasizing that he does not use ready-made or processed ingredients.
“I serve very simple food (but) what’s important is you serve genuine food,” Lucarini said.
As of the present, the La Toscana resto can accommodate 100 people at a time. They are open from 10:30 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. But it is also exciting to note that they offer a promo for those who will buy a whole pizza from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. by giving them another whole pizza pie for free.