20 Years as a Boulder Tradition!

This month marks the 20th anniversary of Laudisio Italian Restaurant. Conceived by Antonio Laudisio, a first-generation American who learned the arts at his Mother’s side in the kitchen of her Miami restaurant, Laudisio spent 18 years in a small shopping center on Iris and 28th St. In 2006 Laudisio took the restaurant to the newly built 29th Street Mall, expanding into a larger and contemporary new home.

Since it’s opening in Boulder in 1989, and through the recent move to the 29th Street Mall, Laudisio has been a Boulder tradition. Antonio, 68, comes from a long line of culinary artists. Antonio’s ancestors learned to cook and bake on the Amalfi coast in southern Italy. His parents emigrated to the United States in the early 1900’s, opening a bakery under the Brooklyn Bridge. In 1953, when Antonio was 11, they moved to Miami and opened a small restaurant. He and his three brothers—Agostino Jr., Raimondo and Leonardo—all worked there together, perfecting the family traditions.

Antonio eventually opened a family pizzeria of his own in Miami. He then moved to Boulder with his wife, Patricia, daughter Lucia and son, Tavio, and opening the Iris location. In 2006, Antonio saw an opportunity and moved the restaurant to the Twenty Ninth Street mall, joining with partner Richard Schaden.

Laudisio continues to adhere to the family traditions by using fresh, local ingredients, and maintaining a strong sense of community within his restaurant. "The main inspiration is found right in what's happening at the market," Laudisio says. "If I'm using lamb I'm using Colorado lamb. If I'm using vegetables I want to know who's growing them."

With the help of his son, Tavio, and Richard Schaden, Antonio took his cooking style, traditions and personality to the public. “Cooking With Laudisio”, a TV cooking show airing on Rocky Mountain PBS, was launched this past fall. The show, under the direction of Pete Coggan at 42 Productions of Boulder, is a mixture of travel, adventure, wine and food. Spanning between Miami and Boulder, Antonio displays his cooking styles from boats, gardens and markets.

To mark 20 years of serving Boulder with traditional Italian dishes, Laudisio is going back to what brought him to this point.

• All month the special menus will feature classic favorites from the past 2 decades.
• An Anniversary celebration is planned for the evening of January 19, featuring “20 years-20 dollars” specials, live music by Max Wagner and Peneplain Jazz, drink specials and more. There will be 2 sets of music, 5:30 and 7:30.
• There is also a Wine Dinner, featuring the wines of the Veneto region, taking place on January 27. Laudisio has earned many awards for its wine list, featuring over 300 Italian wines. This dinner is $75/person, including 5 courses and 6 wines.
• Laudisio is also working with Community Food Share. Bringing your canned goods to Laudisio this month will earn a free mini-dessert, while helping to support Boulder County families in need.

For more information visit www.Laudisio.com, or call 303.442.1300 to schedule a reservation.