Girasole: Celebrating 20 Years of Fine Food and Family in The Plains

Written by Dulcy B. Hooper | Photos by Gracie Savage

A love of Italy and authentic Italian cuisine is the essence of Girasole, the chef-owned and -operated restaurant celebrating 20 years in The Plains.

Louis and Lydia Patierno met while studying at the prestigious Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, New York. “My husband was trained in a way that doesn’t even exist anymore,” shares Lydia. “He is the most talented Italian chef I have ever worked with.

“It was a very different time then,” she says, recalling that in the 1970s, when she and her husband trained, there were very few women in the profession. “At that point, there were around 1,200 men and only 96 women in the restaurant industry who had been trained at the Culinary Institute.” This prompted Lydia to move into the field of hotel and restaurant management. Since opening their first restaurant in Manassas (Panino, which closed in 2013) and subsequently, Girasole, Lydia has overseen business operations. 

All three Patierno children were expected to work a year in the restaurant, too, after graduating from college. 

“Gabriella is the only one who didn’t leave me!” Lydia shares. “I bought her every book I could find about Italian food. She studied in Rome for three years, and she brought her background to Girasole. She has been here for eight years now and it is so wonderful to have her here and all the creativity she brings.”

Though the only one to stay in the family business, Gabriella Patierno gives her siblings a great deal of credit. “Both my brother and sister have paid their dues and spent time working at the restaurant,” she notes, “whether in between jobs or, like me, after college. But I am the only one who has stuck around. They will always be part of the restaurant, though.” She adds, “At home, we all enjoy the benefits of being in the restaurant business — great ingredients, imported delicacies, and delicious wines.”

When Gabriella returned from Rome for family visits, she would crave dishes that she’d experienced on her travels. “I would urge my dad to recreate them at the restaurant. Some dishes took time to catch on and for tastes to be curious enough to try them. Now, they are staples on our seasonal menus.”

As part of the restaurant’s 20th anniversary celebration, Louis has been hosting cooking demonstrations, inviting participants behind the scenes at Girasole and sharing some of his favorite cookbooks. One of those demonstrations featured Domenica Marchetti, the author of eight books on Italian cooking. 

“I only learned about Girasole four or five years ago,” Marchetti explains, “and I wish I’d known about it when it first opened, because I’ve missed a lot of good meals!” Marchetti adds, “Having taught cooking classes with Chef Lou at the restaurant, I’ve been able to see up close the attention he pays to every dish and the ingredients that go into it. He and his wife, Lydia, really are dedicated to offering a true taste of Italian regional cooking to their customers.”

Some of those ingredients come from Louis Patierno’s garden, located at the back of the restaurant’s parking lot. 

“It is not the biggest or most beautiful garden,” Gabriella admits, “but it represents years of hard work by my dad.” Louis’ garden has supplied the restaurant with squash blossoms, tomatoes, herbs, peppers, asparagus, eggplant, and different types of beans for the past 20 years. The garden’s soil is fed by compost from the restaurant and is fully organic. 

Gabriella adds that within the next few weeks, Girasole will offer a summer menu featuring mostly pastas and produce from her father’s garden. “I do not have an exact date as to when it will start,” she notes, “as things have been slow to grow with the high temperatures this summer.” 

Since she’s been at Girasole, Gabriella has observed that “people’s tastes change, things go in and out of fashion. Different parts of Italy are becoming more traveled, and lesser-known wine regions are becoming more desired. 

“Years ago,” she remembers, “I went to Puglia with my mom, and when we came back and tried to get wines from that region, they were nowhere to be found. There was just not a big enough demand for them at that time. But slowly, those dishes and wines from Puglia, as well as other southern Italian regions, are getting more and more popular.” The restaurant recently redid its wine list to reflect that shift in taste.

“That goes for food as well,” Gabriella says. “Dishes and flavors of those regions are more popular now. Southern Italian dishes tend to have stronger flavors due to different influences. In Sicily alone, you had the Greeks, Romans, Arabs, Normans, and the Spanish before the island became a part of unified Italy.”

Reflecting on the past 20 years, Lydia adds, “This restaurant is truly our passion.” She finishes, “The community means so much to us. It’s about faith, family, and community. I want to thank everyone for your years of patronizing Girasole.” ML

Girasole
4244 Loudoun Avenue
The Plains, VA 20198
(540) 253-5501
girasoleva.com

Published in the August 2024 issue of Middleburg Life.