Trattoria Uliveto | Our Story
Two friends and a trattoria in Orcutt
We keep one line from an old Italian saying close: "La cucina di un popolo è la sola esatta testimonianza della sua civiltà." The cuisine of a country is the only exact attestation of its civilization, and it's what we cook by.
Partners and friends
Jim Spallino loves restaurants, and he used to eat at the family place in Santa Ynez where Alfonso Curti cooked. He saw right away that Alfonso was the heart of that kitchen, and he planted the idea of a trattoria of his own.
The chef
Alfonso is a native Calabrian and was the executive chef at Grappolo in Santa Ynez. He started in a family bakery as a young teenager, later cooked for troops in the Italian Army, and learned the heart of Italian cooking from his Nonna and Mamma.
The Wine Cottage Bistro space
Both of us had dreamed of a restaurant of our own, and when the Wine Cottage Bistro came available in Old Orcutt, we jumped.
At the table
Start with the Grissini, homemade breadsticks wrapped in prosciutto and soaked in butter and sage. Then try penne with sausage and mushrooms in a tomato cream sauce, or a pizza from our wood-burning oven, and finish with Alfonso's Torta della Nonna.