Papa Razzi to be Reborn as Avvio in Garden City

CRANSTON, RI—Papa Razzi, a popular Italian restaurant in Cranston’s bustling Garden City Center shopping center, will serve its last wood-grilled pizza and penne al pomodoro on Jan. 30.

Come this spring, it will reopen as Avvio Ristorante, offering Neapolitian pizzas and a wood-fired grill with ingredients sourced locally and directly from Italy. The focus will be on simplicity, freshness and the tradition and heritage of Italian cooking.

The executive chef is the same, the owner is the same and it will still be an Italian restaurant at heart. What is different—aside from the refreshed interior and new name—is ”to align with Newport Restaurant Group’s culinary philosophy,” said Paul O’Reilly, CEO and President of Newport Harbor Corporation.

The employee-owned company known for developing and promoting talent from within bought the Papa Razzi chain of restaurants in 2012. It gave the burgeoning Rhode Island restaurant empire that also owns 22 Bowens, Trio, Waterman Grille, Hemenway’s, Smoke House, The Mooring and Castle Hill Inn a foothold in Massachusetts.

Now, as Garden City Center continues to evolve and fill out with premiere and and exclusive destination tenants, O’Reilly said they saw opportunity.

“These changes will allow us to add Avvio to the Newport Restaurant Group portfolio and to provide guests in the West Bay and statewide the experience they have come to expect from our restaurants and with a similar price point to Papa Razzi,” he said.

Chef Greg Coccio, former Executive Chef at Papa Razzi will remain in this role at Avvio. His efforts will be complemented by Chef Kevin DiLibero, Director of Culinary Arts.

The culinary team will be augmented by Chef Casey Riley who serves as Chief Operating Officer and oversees the culinary development of each Newport Restaurant Group property. Chef Riley’s extended familial roots are in Cranston and this opening is especially personal and special as Casey’s appreciation of Italian cooking was first nurtured through the traditions passed on to him via the family table.

During the closure, Papa Razzi gift cards will be accepted at all Papa Razzi locations in Massachusetts, as well as at Newport Restaurant Group properties Waterman Grille and Hemenway’s, in nearby Providence. Visit www.paparazzitrattoria.com or www.avvioristorante.com for additional details.