IL MIO SOGNO REALIZZATO (MY DREAM COME TRUE)
I was enjoying a delicious plate of pasta with sea dates, the most exotic of shellfish, when the inspiration for Spiaggia came to me. My Italian friend Vando D’Angiolo was treating me to a spectacular lunch at Bistrot Ristorante, located right on the sparkling Mediterranean beach in Forti dei Marmi. I was there to buy granite and marble from Vando for a one-million-square-foot mixed-use building I was planning to build on the famed corner of Oak Street and Michigan Avenue in Chicago. As lunch progressed, I fantasized about having a jewel box of an Italian restaurant as the centerpiece of this fabulous new building. The restaurant space would overlook Chicago’s Oak Street Beach on the shores of Lake Michigan at the northernmost point of the Magnificent Mile.
Italians from Milan, Rome, and Florence make the time-honored vacanza pilgrimage with their families to Forti dei Marmi each August. They relax on the beautiful beaches and swarm the seaside restaurants and cafes to savor the delicious cooking of this charming city on the Tuscan coast. As I observed these rituals, this way of life, and the joy of the Italian people, I wanted to bring it all back home with me. I have always been passionate about all things Italian: the food, the wines, the cars, the clothes, the cities, the people and their culture. I am as passionate about my hometown of Chicago as I am about Italy, and I feel fortunate to have built my business and settled my family here.
Spiaggia means “beach” in Italian, and when we picked the name it all started to come together. I envisioned delicious, authentic Italian meals with fantastic regional Italian wines being served to Chicago’s leading locals and visitors in a tiered setting where every guest could view Chicago’s spiaggia. I pictured beautiful custom rosso levanto marble columns from Forte dei Marmi adorning the dining room. I imagined romantics proposing marriage, families celebrating special occasions, and investment bankers toasting their biggest deals. That’s how Spiaggia was conceived.
So the seed was planted. As I began construction at the One Magnificent Mile address in 1980, I started my search for a truly great chef who could share my vision and be the creative genius to bring it to life. One of our employees, Cathy Roeske, while working with my mother, Eadie, at the Chestnut Street Grill (then the best of the four Levy Restaurants), spoke often of the talents of her fantastic fiance, Tony Mantuano, who was, according to her, an outstanding Italian chef.
I decided to give Tony’s food a try and invited him to cook for my wife, Carol, and some of our friends at a dinner party in our home. On that memorable night, I remember the late Gene Siskel giving the meal “two thumbs up,” along with my brother Mark and many of our other good friends. We all knew instantly that I had found the maestro who would orchestrate the vision that was to become Spiaggia. The first step was clear to me:
I sent Tony and Cathy, now his wife, off to Italy for a year. They were able to immerse themselves in the culture of Italy, working in the very best restaurants throughout the country, and they carried that experience back to Spiaggia.
I have been an entrepreneur for over thirty-five years, principally as a restaurateur and real estate developer on a large scale. Entrepreneurs are dreamers first. Whenever I am asked which is my favorite “dream become reality,” I always answer with Spiaggia:
It is, I feel, my most perfect vision and execution. I am certain that my love for Italian culture helped me in making my dream of Spiaggia come true.
During the last twenty years, Spiaggia has wined and dined the famous, the infamous, trendy “foodies,” and some of the most discerning palates in the world. We have hosted with much success and pride Sir Elton John, the late Princess Diana, Sir Mick Jagger, Julia Roberts, Billy Joel, Harrison Ford, Sting, Tom Cruise, President Clinton, Paul Newman, Steven Spielberg, and Sir Paul McCartney. (Tony created a special five-course vegetarian menu per Sir Paul’s request that magical evening; the meal was such a hit, the menu has become a permanent seasonal feature, delighting vegetarians and meat eaters alike.) Spiaggia is as much for family and loved ones sharing great food as for luminaries, or for special events. Carol and I have had too many memorable dinners at Spiaggia to count, with our four sons, their wives, our grandchildren, my mother, Eadie, and our dearest friends.
Many of the great chefs of America and Europe have visited Spiaggia, including Alice Waters, Wolfgang Puck, Charlie Trotter, Rick Bayless, Gordon Ramsay, David Bouley,
Paul Bocuse, Joel Robuchon, Ferran Adria, Daniel Boulud, Jean Banchet, and many others. Our grandson Riley may turn out to be a great American chef, although it’s a little early to tell at six years old. (I will never forget Riley’s excitement the night we brought him to Spiaggia to meet his idol, Emeril Lagasse.) Many important winemakers from Italy have dined at Spiaggia, among them Angelo Gaja, Maurizio Zanella, Marchesi de’ Frescobaldi, Piero Antinori, Silvio Jermann, Paolo Marzotto, and Francesca Planeta.
Like a proud father, I can’t resist singing the praises of Spiaggia, but my raves are confirmed by the culinary industry. Spiaggia has won virtually every culinary award, including the Ivy Award, the Oscar of the restaurant industry. The Chicago Tribune and Chicago Magazine rate Spiaggia four stars. Vando D’Angiolo, to me the quintessential Italian, says that Spiaggia would be one of the three best restaurants in Italy. Chef Tony Mantuano has developed into a major star on the world’s food stage. His innate brilliance and creativity inspire his talented staff, the guests he serves each day, and me.
Cathy Mantuano played an instrumental role on Spiaggia’s management team and now focuses her talents on food writing and wine consulting.
Larry Levy Founder and chairman of Levy Restaurants, owner of Spiaggia