PARMIGIANO.  OLIO EXTRA VERGINE. VINO BIANCO.  MARSALA.  TARTUFO.  PASTA AL UOVO.  PORCHETTA.  BISTECCA.  LASAGNA.  GNOCCHI.  RAVIOLI.  AMATRICIANA.  AGNELLO ALLE BRACE.  PESCE AL FUOCO.  CROTONESE.  CAFFE CORRETTO.  GELATO.  GRAPPA.  BARBARESCO.  CARPACCIO.  PIAVE.  PROSCIUTTO.  PECORINO.  FUNGHI PORCINI.  RAVIOLI.  CAPELLETTI.  POMODORI SAN MARZANO. PASTA ALL’ AMATRICIANA.  SALAMI PAISANELLA.  SALSICCIA ALLA GRIGLIA.  PANCETTA.  POLLO AL MATTONE. PROSECCO. PANINO.  PIADINA.  PIZZA ALLA ROMANA.  TIRAMISU.  DOLCE DI NONNA.  GRANITA DI CAFFE.  GRAPPA.  LIMONCELLO….e anche di piu!

In a world where little seems real somedays – including a meal on a restaurant plate – we’ve dedicated our approach to keeping it all truly real and bringing it all back to the basics as we know the basics to be. And never forgetting the rules we were taught – that great food is something to be thankful for, but that great food in our homes was always a ‘gimme’…it’s what brings good people together, everywhere.  Hmmmm. And MMMMMMMMMmmmmmmmm!

This is the food of Italy as we know it - a snapshot of our Family Food Archives and heavily influenced by countless unforgettable ’70s Sundays crowded into Nonna’s Basement surrounded by our hip and young Italian parents sporting wide belts and bell bottom jeans and tight rock t-shirts and sideburns and slacks and Master John dress shoes on our dads and uncles. Listening to Tom Jones and Led Zeppelin and Neil Diamond and the Bee Gees and Black Sabbath and old country traditional Italian classics playing Italian deck cards all afternoon while the grappa flowed…

And Nana Miskouri bee-hive hairstyles, ultra-loud tube tops and disco jump suits on our moms, aunts and their girlfriends…and all of us rug-rat cousins taking it all in, knowing these assemblies weren’t an option – and yet even at this young wild and free age knowing how ultimately valuable this commotion  would forever prove to be to all of us…

And of course, our Nonnas in the kitchen sending out only their BEST to bring the family together to the table and hold us all there – spellbound and really living - with smokin’ Family Food, over the top Italian energy and loads of family love.

Now that was a Brave New World. New to our country and our city at that point for barely over a decade, our families created and instilled in us a culture of entertaining and solidarity and easy-going style…a real time-capsule of early 60′s and 70′s Italy and community that we’ve never forgotten. And never will.

This is the essence of Respect is Burning Supperclub and we present to you a style of Italian cooking that’s uniquely ours – a distillation of classic recipes from the central regions of Italy re-interpreted and tweaked over countless years in our Family Kitchens. Mashed up with an attitude of fun, candid kick-back attitude, adventure, and passion galore. Mostly reverent, but with the occasional twist, influenced by the tastes and sights we experience in our travels today, with our friends and our own growing families. Always promised to be great, and an ongoing tribute to a frozen place in time.

Our kitchen is a sizzler, that’s for sure – and we couldn’t do it alone.

I’ve been working kitchens with my right hand Head Chef Darren Elliott for almost 20 years – both of us a couple of punk kids back in the day clanging pans and banging beers and whiskey till the wee hours, and bringing it all back to the glorious basics for our families and friends and ourselves.  And when I say basics, don’t let yourself be fooled – we’ve led the Rustic Renaissance in our territories for that long together, along with an impressive line-up of Culinary Soldiers and Sisters in our Supperclub Bullpen (that’s what i like to call it!) killing the grill and pumping Heritage Pasta Traditions every day and every night.  We understand Soul Food – anchored to Italian, married to the kind of food that makes friends of enemies, in ANY land.

And there’s no way we’d refer to our front of house as merely servers and bartenders.  That’s so lame. Another super awesome team of our Supperclub Soldiers and Sisters, and the ones you get to meet when you visit us – they like to eat and drink, but most can’t cook.  That doesn’t matter when they’re possibly some of the most colourful, smiley, respectful, accomodating and loveable characters you could ever meet.  Seriously.

And that’s who we are, and this is what we all do together.

We hope you enjoy it all as we do – as a vehicle for bringing your people together for regular celebration, bonding, laughing out loud, and REALLY LIVING!!!!

ROB AND MINI

Your Supperclub Founders, at your Service!