November is already filling the calendar with holiday spirit. Chicago has two new Italian restaurants to try, while Atlanta’s Amore e Amore is preparing for dinner guests from the North Pole. In New York, holiday plans involve lasagna near Rockefeller Center and panettone delivered to your door. Here are nine updates from the Italian food world.
Settepani starts the holiday baking season
The panettone planning can begin. New York’s Settepani has announced its 2026 holiday collection, with classic, chocolate, Nutella, pistachio, pumpkin pecan and Rainbowttone varieties.
Pandoro and seasonal pies are also part of the collection, with gift packaging and nationwide shipping available. Settepani’s online shop directs customers to Goldbelly for orders.
Before Christmas comes Thanksgiving. The Harlem restaurant is offering dine-in and take-home menus, including a feast for eight to 10 people.
That leaves one smaller decision: which panettone to send as a gift, and which to keep for breakfast.
Hungry for more Italian food? Find your next favorite dish in our collection of Italian recipes.
San Diego's Marisi pairs handmade pasta with California ingredients
In La Jolla, Marisi serves regional Italian cooking under executive chef Kaitlyn Smith, with a focus on hearth cooking, handmade pasta and seasonal California ingredients.
Menu highlights include:
- Short Rib Raviolo with black truffle, ricotta, and beef jus
- Red Kuri Squash with brown butter pepitas and togarashi
- Lamb Sausage Radiatori with braised greens, roasted fennel, pine nuts, and pecorino
- Filet Mignon with smoked greens, parsnip purée, red wine jus, and cipollini onion
- Burrata with honeynut squash, Italian chili crisp, and toasted sourdough
The drinks menu includes housemade limoncello, spirit-free options and a rotating Cellar Gems program offering rare Italian and California wines by the glass.
Part of Jewel Hospitality Group, Marisi takes its name from the founders’ grandparents, Marila and Isidoro.
Explore more of Appetito's favorite southern California dining spots.
Salvatore Martone brings Neapolitan pizza to Uptown Houston
The dough-making process takes 72 hours. The pizza needs just two minutes in the oven. At Aroma, opening Nov. 14 at 1800 Post Oak Blvd., Suite 100, in Uptown Houston, chef Salvatore Martone is putting his pastry experience to work on Neapolitan sourdough pizza. The James Beard Award nominee and longtime Joël Robuchon protégé builds the dough around a 55-year-old sourdough starter brought from Italy.
Toppings range from San Marzano tomatoes and fior di latte to smoked scamorza with brisket, while the pasta menu includes cacio e pepe, linguine vongole and amatriciana. Dessert brings fried pizza dough with Nutella and pistachio to the table. The casual restaurant from The Bastion Collection will accept reservations through Resy, with space held for walk-ins.
More Texas, more pasta? Pull up a chair at Appetito’s favorite Italian restaurants in the Lone Star State.
La Pecora Bianca opens its largest restaurant across from Lincoln Center
Lincoln Center audiences have a new dinner option across the street. La Pecora Bianca opened its largest location Oct. 19 at 61 Columbus Ave., with more than 250 seats spread across two floors.
The menu brings back familiar orders, including rigatoni vodka and chicken Parmesan, alongside dishes created for Lincoln Square. Among the additions are mafaldine with roasted butternut squash, brown butter and crispy sage, plus trecce with braised short rib ragù and Parmesan. An autumn pizza combines delicata squash, speck, ricotta, fontina and sage.
There is plenty to look at between courses. Designed with interior architecture firm Home Studios, the 8,000-square-foot interior features custom furnishings and a 50-foot lemon orchard mural by artist Kimmy Quillin that stretches across both floors. The beverage menu includes Italian wines, signature cocktails and spritzes.
Mauro Mafrici returns to Chicago
Chicago diners who remember Pelago have a familiar name to look up. Chef Mauro Mafrici and his wife, architect and designer Kimberly Anguil Mafrici, have returned with Mauro Mafrici One Magnificent Mile.
At 980 N. Michigan Ave., near Oak Street, the new restaurant overlooks Lake Michigan. Kimberly designed the space, which includes a windowed dining room, a bar and lounge, and private dining rooms.
The project reunites the former Pelago owners around Italian cooking and hospitality, with Mauro leading the culinary side and Kimberly shaping the setting. Dinner reservations are available through OpenTable.
Costa Bella opens with Italian cuisine in North Scottsdale
Charlotte and Olivier opened Costa Bella on Oct. 6, drawing on their different backgrounds and years of hospitality experience. Together, they set out to create an Italian restaurant that feels elegant and welcoming, with attentive service and a focus on quality. Their aim is simple: to serve good food and make guests feel well cared for.
Pizzeria Gabbo gives Chicago two ways to order pizza
Square-cut or triangular? At Chicago’s new Pizzeria Gabbo, the table can order both.
The Lettuce Entertain You restaurant opened Oct. 22 at 834 W. Fulton Market St., Suite 200. Created by executive partner Marc Jacobs and chef partner Andrew Ashmore, Gabbo serves Chicago Thin & Crispy and New York Crispy pizzas, the latter a crispier interpretation of the familiar New York style.
The Chicago lineup includes a fennel sausage and giardiniera pizza, while the New York offerings include a tomato pie and a golden potato pizza with lemon and rosemary. Beyond the pies, there are pepperoni chips with marinara, slow-cooked chicken Bolognese rigatoni and soft-serve gelato in roasted pistachio and milk chocolate.
Italian wines and spritzes round out the menu. Choosing a pizza allegiance can wait until after dinner.
Santa has dinner plans at Amore e Amore
With Halloween behind us, Atlanta’s Amore e Amore is moving straight into Christmas.
The Inman Park restaurant’s annual North (Highland) Pole celebration returns Nov. 3, filling the dining room with Christmas trees, ornaments and hundreds of twinkling lights. Mama Gale Parker is continuing the holiday tradition she created with her late husband, Professor Giovanni.
Santa and Mrs. Claus will visit from 5 to 8 p.m. Nov. 27 and Dec. 1-3, 8-9 and 15-17. Children can share their wish lists, pose for photos and write letters to Santa between bites of ravioli, pizza bites or spaghetti and meatballs.
Adults can order from the full à la carte menu or choose a holiday prix fixe dinner. The restaurant is at 467 N. Highland Ave. NE, and children 12 and younger are welcome to dine from opening at 5 p.m. until 8 p.m.
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Ginger gets ready for Midtown’s holiday rush
A day of holiday sightseeing in Midtown needs a dinner plan. Ginger Ristorante, at 123 W. 49th St., puts Italian cooking close to Rockefeller Center and Radio City Music Hall.
Beginning Nov. 15, the restaurant plans to dress for the season with decorations by American Christmas. Its fall and winter menu includes lasagna with ragù, tomato sauce and Parmigiano béchamel, plus eggplant parmigiana with burrata fondue and mozzarella. Panna cotta with vanilla, salted caramel and chocolate is among the dessert offerings.
The broader menu includes vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free options, making it easier to organize dinner for a group with different preferences. A private dining room accommodates up to 60 guests.
For visitors fitting dinner between the holiday windows and a show, the location takes one decision off the itinerary.
