Second helpings
By Greg Cox, Correspondent
When Parker Kennedy opened Caffe Luna (136 E. Hargett St.; 832-6090; www.caffeluna.com) in downtown Raleigh in 1996, Italian restaurants in the Triangle pretty much came in two varieties: basic pizza/pasta joint and upscale ristorante. If you were looking for something more ambitious than spaghetti with marinara but less expensive than osso buco, your options were severely limited.
Kennedy, a Raleigh native who had returned from New York, where he had been a successful wine salesman for more than 20 years, aimed to remedy that situation. Caffe Luna offered a menu of light Italian fare, with options such as grilled salmon and orecchiette with broccoli and Italian sausage in the $9-$13 range. He applied his wine expertise to assembling a cellar of affordable, mostly Italian wines. His wife, noted local artist Nicole Kennedy, decorated the dining room in a romantic style evocative of a Tuscan courtyard.
In the 12 years since, Caffe Luna has expanded from a single room with 80 seats to four rooms with nearly three times the original capacity, including banquet facilities. Kennedy has wisely retained the features that have been the keys to the restaurant's success. That includes reasonable pricing, which still tops out at just under $17.
The menu has evolved but retains its focus on light fare, including a number of the original dishes. Execution is as solid as ever, judging by a recent visit. Fried calamari, served with a classic warm marinara sauce, were tender, among the most tender around. Grilled salmon was slightly overcooked, but fiocchi, a new dish featuring pasta “purses” filled with a purée of cheese and pear, were a delicate delight. Tortelli crostacci, filled with lobster, crabmeat, prawns and ricotta, were also rewarding. A side dish of sautéed spinach was distinguished by several whole caramelized garlic cloves – and by the fact that the portion was ample for two or three at $4.95.
I don't think I've ever dined at Caffe Luna without being greeted by the dapper and congenial Kennedy, whose presence contributes as much to the restaurant's atmosphere as his wife's impressionist landscapes on the dining-room walls. Get him talking about those paintings, and at some point he's sure to reveal that Caffe Luna opened on Nicole Kennedy's birthday.
There's no telling how many customers' birthday celebrations – not to mention prom dates, wedding receptions and pre-theater dinners – have since taken place within Caffe Luna's sunny yellow walls. And no telling how many more are yet to come.