New Haven has a long history with Italian food, and is particularly known for the creation of New Haven-style apizza. Specifically, Wooster Street in New Haven is known as “pizza row” and is home to renowned places such as Sally’s and Frank Pepe’s. Although these spots -- and many others on Wooster Street -- focus on pizza, Gioia Cafe & Bar is a recent addition that promotes itself as offering “unfussy Italian dishes, wood-fired specials, and pastas made fresh in-house.” I had been hearing some positive buzz about this new, trendy location and decided I had to go and try it for myself.
Pronounced joy-ah, Gioia means joy in the Italian language. The restaurant is run by co-founders Avi Szapiro and Tim Cabral. Combined, they have extensive experience in restaurant, hospitality and culinary industries and are connected to the City of New Haven. The eatery has a main dining room, bar and even a rooftop that overlooks Wooster Street. Attached to the restaurant is a gelateria offering Italian-style ice cream, which is open from Tuesday to Sunday. The business also has an Italian market which offers grab-and-go items, housemade pastas & sauces and a variety of other items. Conveniently, as parking on Wooster Street can be challenging to find, the restaurant has its own parking lot.
Upon walking into Gioia, the aesthetic is the first thing I noticed. It can be described as mid-century modern with bright pops of color. The decor was inviting and felt like an elevated space. It definitely has the right look if you’re on the hunt for a spot to host your next date night or celebrate a special occasion/milestone. The bar area is lined with green tile and has some booth seating, while the dining area has bright fuchsia walls, circular booth tables and normal seated tables for groups of varying sizes.
As you sip your drink and eat you can watch the kitchen staff hard at work as the restaurant has an open-view kitchen layout. Unfortunately, I did not get to visit the rooftop, but I have heard it is just as beautifully decorated as the main dining area.
To start, a piece of focaccia bread is brought out for each person. Typical focaccia is seasoned with rosemary, olive oil and sea salt and should be airy and golden. This focaccia had the perfect texture: a crunchy, bubbly crust and soft, spongy interior. The only criticism I had was that it lacked salt as well as rosemary.
As we finished our focaccia, our cocktail picks arrived. We tried the Dirty Martini and the Corsica Negroni, and both were delicious! A classic dirty martini should be made with vodka, vermouth, olive brine and stuffed olives. Gioia's version was on point. A negroni should consist of gin, sweet vermouth and Campari. Gioa's serving delivered coffee bean steeped in the Campari, which was very unique and worked well in giving the drink a smooth and warm finish.
While these dishes were decent, I would say they weren’t worth the $28 price point. I enjoyed the pistachio pesto bucatini more, but the flavor was lacking in the mafaldine. There were too many elements in the dish that were working against each other and it just wasn’t for me. While we weren’t impressed by the pastas, we did get the pistachio gelato for dessert, and it was decadent. The gelato was creamy and smooth and the pistachio flavor was nutty and delicious.
Gioia is a gorgeous place full of potential and I would recommend that people go there, sit at the beautiful bar and have a drink and dessert. When a place like New Haven, especially Wooster Street, has a myriad of dining options and steep competition for Italian food, I would not recommend going for dinner. Go somewhere else for a meal, and have an after-dinner experience at Gioia instead.
ABOUT AYANA JAIN
Writer Ayana Jain is a young woman who graduated from Southern Connecticut State University with a degree in Communications and Advertising. Some of her main interests include food, travel, reading and films. She has lived in Fairfield for over 20 years and is an expert on everything trendy in the area. To contact Ayana, please email: ajain0614@gmail.com