GREAT FALLS — After months of anticipation, Pomodoro Italian Cuisine has finally opened its doors at 1008 20th Street South. As KRTV's resident culinary expert, I had to head over and have a look inside.
Restaurant partner Karolina LeBlanc's vision for Pomodoro began at home, inspired by her family's profound culinary origins.
Meet the people behind Pomodoro:
“This actually started because my dad has been an executive chef his entire life, specializing in Italian cuisine. And every time he came into town, I was like, oh my gosh, this place needs some Italian food,” she said.
LeBlanc and her partners envisioned a neighborhood that would thrive on true Italian cuisine.
She said that she and her staff wanted a place to get authentic Italian food in their town, so they opened Pomodoro.
According to Chef Giovanni Lipnik, real Italian cuisine requires the appropriate ingredients.
LeBlanc noted, “Let's say, particular Italian dishes, you need to have really authentic olive oil. You need real Parmigiano-Reggiano, you need Italian pasta.”
While pasta, cheese, and specialty products are brought straight from Italy, the restaurant also uses locally-sourced ingredients to keep dishes fresh while staying true to traditional recipes.
“I've got to tell you, this community is so amazing. I'm just absolutely thrilled. And this is one of the reasons why I started with a smaller spot, because we weren't really sure how the excitement was going to be. And if the city would really like something like this.”
On November 14th, the restaurant hosted a soft opening for friends and family before hosting a big opening the next day. I was able to try numerous dishes—carbonara, tiramisu, and others—but one of the standouts, according to LeBlanc, is a fan favorite for a reason.
“One of my favorites is probably the gnocchi gorgonzola. The gnocchi is actually made in-house. Gorgonzola, of course, gives it's almost like a blue cheese, but it's a little bit more mild, and it's a nice cream sauce, and then it's topped with, like, crispy prosciutto, and it's really, really good.”
Pomodoro Italian Cuisine is open from Tuesdays through Saturdays, serving lunch from 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. and dinner from 4:30 p.m. to 8 p.m.
The restaurant is primarily take-out, but there is patio dining if the weather allows.
The address is 1008 20th Street South. Click here to visit the website; click here to visit the Facebook page.
