They have been lifelong friends who bonded over their love of Italian food and hockey. The NHL never came calling, but as of last month they went pro when it comes to food.
Childhood friends Marco Gagliardi and Anthony Dragotto just opened Josephine in Silver Lake, where they are serving Northern Italian and French cuisine from a 1950s craftsman bungalow that was the former home of Bowery Bungalow, a Middle Eastern restaurant.
“The food here kind of blurs the lines on the French-Italian border. So in the summer there’s more Riviera ingredients, like tomatoes, fresh produce, fresh cheeses, and in the winter time more Alpine region, cheese sauces, heavier au jus and whole roasted animals,” Gagliardi said.
Gagliardi and Dragotto first met as young kids in San Jose while they were playing hockey and quickly bonded not just over their love of the game, but also for their love of food.
“His family and ours and all the other families in the program pretty much stuck together,” Dragotto said.
“Both our families are Italian so we ate delicious food all the time and had a strong heritage in food,” he added.
This love for food led to the pair opening their first restaurant in late May. Dragotto runs the business while Gagliardi is the executive chef, having worked at notable kitchens including Zahav and Vetri Cucina in Philadelphia and Bon Delire in San Francisco before Josephine. And when they opened the restaurant, choosing the name was a no-brainer since Dragotto’s grandmother and Gagliardi’s great-grandmother were both named Josephine.
The food was a no-brainer too as they went with Italian and French cuisines rooted in classical European techniques driven by California produce and seafood with a menu that changes monthly based on what’s available at local farmers’ markets.
“The real genesis of the French aspect is that we are hockey players and all of our coaches were French-Canadian, so since we were little kids French culture was always in our face,” Gagliardi said, explaining the French influence in their menu.
In June some of the standout dishes include the heirloom chicken tortellini, dry aged duck breast and Steak Frites au Poivre. The hearty Frites dish is made with prime Denver steak grilled over coals with Japanese green peppercorn, triple-cooked fries and au jus with bone marrow.
“What distinguishes our steak frites is that we use Sansho peppercorns from Japan. That peppercorn is a little more floral,” Gagliardi said.
Another item available this month is the Sourdough focaccia. Yes, it may seem like just bread but at Josephine the partners say this is a must.
“It goes with everything, so you must order it. You can swipe up all the sauces throughout the meal,” Gagliardi said.
Josephine is at 4156 Santa Monica Blvd., Los Angeles. 323-430-9678 or josephinesilverlake.com.