By Dee Owens, Special to Communities@WashingtonTimes
Baltimore, December 23, 2011 — It’s a brisk yet sunny weekend afternoon when actor Chazz Palminteri strolls into the Baltimore restaurant that bears his name, his teenaged son in tow.
The two have spent the day exploring the upscale Harbor East neighborhood where Chazz: A Bronx Original is situated—just a few blocks from the city’s famous Inner Harbor.
“We had fun,” says Palminteri, 59, whose demeanor is pleasant and a tad shy. “Just walking around and seeing all the attractions.”
The native New Yorker is best-known for roles in such films as “A Bronx Tale,” “The Usual Suspects,” and “Bullets Over Broadway,”—the latter earning him an Oscar nomination for “Best Supporting Actor.”
Now the writer, director and all-around thespian has added something else to his resume: restaurateur. Open less than a year, Palminteri’s eponymous restaurant pays homage to both his Bronx and Italian-American roots.
“My mom was Sicilian, my dad was Sicilian. Mom was a great cook, but all the women were,” he recalls. “I lived on the 5th floor and it would take me ten minutes to get down to the first floor. `Cause on every floor they would see me, “Oh, come in Chazz, taste some sausage, taste some meatballs.’ And I remembered it, and really wanted to share that food, that atmosphere with people today.”
The result is a hotspot that’s drawing crowds of locals and tourists. When asked how he wound up in Baltimore, the actor speaks of being in town some years back performing his one-man show.
“I was looking for a good Italian restaurant. I went into Aldo’s [in the city’s Little Italy neighborhood] and I loved it. I went back every night and we became friends with the owners,” he says of brothers Sergio and Alessandro Vitale. “Over the years we talked about opening a place together. And here it is.”
The `Chazz’ menu includes “Bronx style” pizza made in a traditional coal-fired oven, house-made pasta, salads, antipasti, veal meatballs, and house-made desserts such as Lemon Ricotta cheesecake.
Diners can enjoy wines from the vineyards of Southern Italy and beyond, home-made limoncello, handcrafted cocktails, artisan beers and a full espresso station.
Palminteri is proud of the entire menu, gleaned in part from family recipes. The chefs use plenty of fresh organic vegetables and such from regional suppliers, but get various specialty ingredients—including the mozzarella and burrata cheeses-- straight from Italy.
The wheat and yeast for the pizza also hail from Italy—Naples to be exact. Palminteri raves about the pizza and the oven.
“I said look, `If we’re gonna bring the Bronx style food that I had growing up in the 50s and 60s, it has to be a coal fired oven,” he explains. “Its temperature is 900 degrees, it cooks in 90 seconds, the pizza. But it’s really great because what happens is when you cook it like that, it’s charred on the bottom, soft in the center and the cheese is caramelized on the top. It’s just delicious.”
It takes someone who’s experienced, he adds, to operate the oven. “We even got Enrico who’s from Naples, where they invented the Margherita pizza. So we flew him in and he does the pizza. We wanted to make it really authentic and right.”
The vibe at Chazz is casual and comfy, yet nice enough for a special occasion. The décor features scenes from Palminteri’s “A Bronx Tale,” including Arthur Avenue and an elevated train platform.
Patrons can relax at the “Pizza Altar” to watch their pie being baked to order, or enjoy one of several dining rooms, including one with black and white photos of cinematic scenes.
That’s fitting since Chazz has already welcomed celebrity pals and fellow actors such as Robert De Niro. He’s invited Bradley Cooper, too.
“The only drawback of Baltimore is I can’t get everyone here readily,” he says. “It’s a four-hour drive from Manhattan. But friends have promised to come when they are in the area.”
In the meantime, there’s already buzz about possible expansion.
The owners are considering Penn Quarter in Washington and National Harbor in suburban Maryland. Other potential sites include Atlantic City—where Palminteri performed recently at one of the casinos.
“This way on a weekend, I could visit them all and we could keep a real close eye on each one,” he explains. “So you have the same great experience.”
1415 Aliceanna Street, Baltimore, Maryland 21231
Phone (410) 522-5511
Hours: Monday - Thursday 11:30 a.m. – 12:00 a.m.
Friday & Saturday 11:30 a.m. – 2:00 a.m.
Sunday 5:00 p.m. – 10:00 p.m.
Dinner prices from $24-34
Dee Owens is a travel writer and author based in Maryland.
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