Introducing you to new locally-owned businesses…
La Gitana Pizzeria
Authentic Italian pizzas featuring extra virgin olive oil, Italian flour, Prosciutto San Daniele from the Alps, and imported cheeses and olives, made in a wood-fired oven, with gluten-free crust options… salads made with organic fresh produce, including arugula… family-made cheese from Wisconsin…homemade desserts…all this is the bill of fare at La Gitana Pizzeria.
Happy with the success of their still-thriving restaurant in Yelm, Italian Francesco Chiechi and Argentinian Carlos Morist opened La Gitana in Olympia a few months back.
Francesco learned the restaurant business as a youngster in Riccione, Italy, making pizzas, practicing the art of good Italian cooking. Carlos developed his artistic career in jewelry design. Both men are now devoted to offering customers 41 artful pizza combinations including vegan choices, plus antipasto, green salads and fine Italian wines.
Francesco says, “Carlos is the businessman, and I enjoy cooking. We share a commitment to providing quality first. We order the best of everything from suppliers who work with buyers all over the world. We built the oven and created the counters, but the overall interior design was by Venezuelan artist Marialba Amenegual. The artwork is hers, too. The brick walls were already visible.”
Marialba’s painting of a dancing gypsy in red is stunningly beautiful, welcoming all to a pleasant room with comfortable red chairs at simple tables, wood floors illuminated by track-lighting that highlights the giant, cheerfully blazing wood-fired pizza oven. A wide assortment of beers and wines are arrayed behind shake-sided counters.
“Our lunchtime special,” Francesco says, “is 9 inch pizza and green salad for $9, 11:30-3:30 daily. I like the fact that Olympia’s downtown isn’t corporate, but filled with Mom-and-Pop stores. We like the variety of people, too.”
Sunday-Thursday 11:30-8:30 pm
Friday-Saturday 11:30-9:30 pm
518 Capitol Way South, downtown Olympia, WA
360-753-2929, reservations welcome
new-biz-oly is written by Holly Graham. To suggest a new locally-owned business to be featured, please email olympiapowerandlight@gmail.com.