Pete Murdaca grew up watching the smiles on guests' faces when his father greeted them by name. It didn't matter how busy the dining room was, Jimmy Murdaca always made time to stop and say hello. As a kid, Pete saw it as part of the job. As an adult, he realized it was the reason people kept coming back.
"It wasn't just about the food," Pete said. "People came to see Jimmy."
That lesson influenced the way Pete came to understand the family business. A restaurant could serve a great meal, but what kept people returning was how they felt when they walked through the door.
Learning from Jimmy
Those values started a generation earlier, when Pete's grandfather, Pietro Murdaca, immigrated from Calabria to California in the 1950s. Like so many Italian immigrants, he came looking for opportunity. Within a year of arriving, he had opened a small restaurant in Vacaville serving pizza, pasta, beer and wine. It gave the family a foothold in a new country, and the business grew into several Pietro's restaurants across Northern California before Pete's father took over the Lodi location in 1985.
Pete never knew his grandfather. Instead, many of his earliest memories revolve around his grandmother, whom everyone simply called "Mama." She worked the cash register despite speaking little English, keeping track of the business with a color-coded system she created herself. As a child, Pete didn't understand what she was doing. He only remembers standing beside the register, fascinated by the lights and colors while customers greeted her by name.
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Finding His Own Path
After graduating from college, Pete could have stepped directly into the family business. Instead, he left for Italy. He enrolled at ALMA, the culinary school outside Parma, then spent two years working in Michelin-starred restaurants in Calabria and Rome. The work was demanding, often stretching into 16-hour days, but it gave him an appreciation for the discipline behind professional kitchens and a broader perspective on Italian cuisine.
Just as important, it helped him understand what his family's restaurants didn't need to become. "I never really liked the idea of being an authentic Italian restaurant," Pete said. "We are Italian American, and that's just who we are."
For Pete, there is no value in pretending California is Italy. The recipes, the traditions and the hospitality all have Italian roots, but they have also been shaped by generations of living in America. His grandmother's lasagna remains on the menu because it’s so good. Chicken parmesan and spaghetti with meatballs may not be common in Italy, but they are part of the Italian American story his family has spent decades telling.
A restaurant in a pandemic
Pete returned to Lodi in 2013 and went to work in the kitchen alongside his father. Eventually, conversations turned toward buying the business. In December 2019, he officially became the owner. Three months later, the world shut down. In the blink of an eye, there were no customers and no clear path forward.
"I tried to give it back," he laughed. “My dad wouldn’t have it.”
Looking back, Pete describes the pandemic as one of the best things that ever happened to the business, even if it didn't feel that way at the time. Surviving those months forced him to grow as an owner. When restaurants reopened, Pietro's experienced an unexpected surge in business. Demand quickly outpaced the restaurant's capacity, giving Pete the confidence to think bigger.
The family purchased property about a mile away and built a new Pietro's from the ground up. The original location became Jimmy's, an upscale steakhouse and supper club named after the man who had spent decades greeting guests at the front door.
Two restaurants, one philosophy
Although the two restaurants offer different experiences, Pete sees them as complementary. Pietro's is designed to be the place for any occasion, whether it's a family dinner after baseball practice, a birthday celebration or a casual Wednesday night meal. Jimmy's is more of a destination, with steaks, seafood and an old-school martini vibe.
Pete credits his father with teaching him never to cut corners, whether it was the ingredients on the plate or the cleanliness of the dining room. "If you give a quality product enough, people will appreciate that," he said.
That philosophy also applies to change. Pietro's has never been afraid to evolve. What started as a neighborhood pizza restaurant has grown into a full-service Italian restaurant, and Pete believes that willingness to adapt is one of the reasons it has remained successful for more than four decades. If the restaurant can improve while staying true to its values, he's willing to take the risk.
Looking ahead
Early on, Pete struggled with the perception that he was simply "the owner's son." The only way he knew to answer those doubts was to work harder.
"I think it was difficult to overcome," he said. "Once I got over that, I think it showed that we were putting in the effort."
Today, Pete leads a company that has expanded from one restaurant and about 50 employees to two restaurants and roughly 300 team members. He laughs at the stereotype that restaurant owners spend every waking hour standing at the front door greeting guests.
"We have a great team of people," he said. "They're the ones who execute every day."
When asked what his grandfather would think if he walked into Jimmy's today, Pete’s face softened. "I think he would be proud," he said slowly, pausing to reflect on the journey that brought his grandparents from Calabria to California.
"What people call entrepreneurs now," Pete said, "they just used to call immigrants."
Jimmy earned the trust of a community one guest at a time. Pete has taken those lessons and made them his own, balancing tradition with growth as he writes the next chapter for two restaurants that continue to draw guests from all over California’s central valley.
The restaurants carry his father and grandfather's names. Every day, Pete works to make them proud.
This story is part of Beyond the Fork, a series by Sarah Campise Hallier and photographer Patty Schmidt exploring California's food industry, business owners, chefs and the communities they serve. Follow @forkboundfoodies or visit their website for future features.
