Savarino’s Cucina becoming the next Music Row

Don't make the mistake of calling Corrado Savarino a chef.

"I am a baker," Savarino said. "A chef just cooks. A baker has to do everything. Can a chef make pastries? Never. Can a baker make lasagna? With his eyes closed."

The 45-year-old Sicily native admits he sounds arrogant, but he's got the chops to back up what he says.

He grew up in his grandfather's vineyards on the southern Italian island, and after his family moved to Brooklyn, he cut his teeth at Veniero's, New York's kingpin of Italian bakeries.

Savarino started at the century-old East Village pasticceria when he was 15 years old. Its owners were family friends and as generous with their pastry secrets as they were with their work ethic-instilling discipline.

"If you got out of line, you got slapped. That's Sicilian culture; you don't mess around. They started me washing floors, and eventually I moved up to washing windows, then painting, how to make cream, how to make cannoli. That's how you learn [to run] an Italian place — you can't just specialize in one thing," Savarino said.

With the exception of a three-year stint in the Army from 1979 to 1982, Savarino has been baking ever since. After a decade at Veniero's, he went to work for the Risboli family who owned two bakeries in Brooklyn and Staten Island, and when they retired, he took over.

In 2001, he left the two businesses to his sister and moved to Nashville to be near an uncle and have a change of pace. Savarino opened Savarino's Cucina, first as a storefront on Nolensville Road and then as a wholesale gig out of a Berry Hill location before opening a spot on Belcourt Avenue.

A testament to the quality of his food is the Music Square A-listers seated around the bakery/restaurant's plain tables. With deep pockets and recognizable names, they could power lunch at any number of Nashville's finest restaurants, but they prefer to pal around over a leisurely lunch of Savarino's traditional fare.

"I have an office on Music Row, but I am headquartering here," jokes Al Bunetta, the head of Oh Boy Records. "I have everything I really want here. Coming here is like going home to my grandmother's house. Beside the people being so great, the quality is awesome. It's literally my second office. It's the southern branch of Oh Boy."

What foods were you raised on?

Everything was homemade. I didn't go to a restaurant until I was in the service. True story. It was McDonald's. I can even give you the date: Sept. 2, 1980. I had just gotten to Ft. Bragg, and I didn't know where to eat. It was late at night, the mess halls were closed, so someone took me into town to get something to eat. I ordered a fish fillet sandwich. I was expecting fish. That was my first experience at a fancy restaurant.

Outside of pizza in Brooklyn, you always ate at home. [In Sicily] My grandfather had vineyards and a farm with animals. Everything was grown fresh: vegetables and fruits. Everything we needed we had. My mother and grandmother made a lot of dishes you've never heard of: broccoli rabe, which is one of the main dishes we have here. No other place in Nashville has it. Stuffed artichokes, stuffed peppers that are done with risotto. We used to make pizza as little kids. Not pizza like with the open face. It's rolled. That's the traditional Sicilian pizza. Growing up here you get milk and cookies; over there pizza was the big treat. Fresh raviolis were also a special treat.

What are your earliest memories in the kitchen?

Watching my grandmother make bread with my mother. Everyone had to help. I remember my grandfather would take me to the vineyards and we'd pick up all the broken twigs and collect them in the back of the pickup truck. The oven was a brick oven, and it had two openings. I'd put the wood in the bottom opening. The oven was on the roof, and this is where my grandmother and mother would gather around. I know that sounds strange, but it wasn't.

Which dish are you most proud of?

The stuffed peppers. When they come out [of the oven], I have to have one. The best time to get it is when it first comes out and it's nice and hot. The seafood salad is not chopped liver either, but the one I have to have all the time is the stuffed pepper. The stuffed pepper has been around many, many years, but the risotto I make it with is a family recipe. We've tested it and made it its best.

What is your culinary philosophy?

In Italian food, you should always use the best ingredients. There's no reason to have 10 different oils, when you can have the best. I don't want anything you can find at Kroger. My cheeses, for example, are all the originals, all the best.

What is your favorite ingredient?

Flour. I make so much bread. I love making bread. I also use it in the cookies, the cakes — more so than sugar, and I have a sweet tooth.

What is your favorite kitchen tool?

The rolling pin. The first time I got handed the rolling pin [as a teenager working at Veniero's], I felt like I was king. It meant I was going to start making cookies. With new chefs, I hold that over their heads. I say, 'You are not anything until you know how to use the rolling pin — that's your basic tool.'

Cooking tip?

Use quality products. Don't use anything cheap because you cheapen your recipe. Use the right oil. Don't use infused oil — it's just a rip off. There's nothing like this oil: Coluccio.

What would I find in your refrigerator?

Only Cokes. That's all I open it for.

What would I find in your CD player?

My kids gave me this iPod. I don't even know how to turn it on.

What do you eat on a normal day?

Scraps. And, every afternoon I have a salad with mackerel. It is not on the menu, but my friends have seen me eating it, and they spread the word to their friends. Try to find mackerel somewhere. I am not talking about the sardines in a can. This mackerel is unbelievable. Palmera. I have used this brand for 20 years.

What is something you would never eat?

Something you will never find in this place: butter. I will never eat ketchup, mustard or mayonnaise, but definitely not butter. I am Sicilian. We always use olive oil. If you knew what butter is, you'd think it was gross. That's what clogs arteries. Some customers get mad because we don't have butter. I say, 'If you want, I'll give you oil.'

What was your most memorable dining experience?

I've only been to two restaurants in this town, and they were both disappointing. One was very expensive — above and beyond what it should be, and one the food was not very good. In New York, if you eat out, you go to Drew's Deli or Chinese food. I eat Italian all the time, so when I go out I like to go to a Jewish deli, which Nashville has none, or Chinese. I am not crazy for Indian food.

Kitchen horror story?

In New York, it was Christmas season, I think in 1992, and I was getting ready to make something I love very much — struffoli, or honey balls. I was standing next to this vat filled with hot oil. So there's no spillage, what you do is put newspaper down on the floor near the candy stove. The vat is about three feet in diameter. I went to throw all the little balls in the hot oil, and some of the oil spilled over the side of the vat, hit the newspaper, and almost started a big fire. That was the last time I used newspaper. It was a big, big mess and very dangerous. Thank God for tiles.

What is your guilty food pleasure?

I hate chocolate. The thing I love most is gelato. Pistachio is my favorite, and has been since I was a kid.

What would your last meal be?

My stuffed peppers.

What is a little known fact about yourself?

I love crossword puzzles. You know the New York Times? I used to be able to do the New York Post's [puzzle] in about 25 minutes, and the New York Times — occasionally, I'll get the weekday one, but I've never been able to do the Sunday one.

Savarino’s Cucina