Il Barone, known for hosting power lunches over elegant plates of fine Italian cuisine, is relocating within Newport Beach.
But business executives who’ve grown accustomed to handshake deals inside Il Barone’s bistro should not fret. The restaurant, tucked in MacArthur Square near John Wayne Airport, is moving one mile away to a shuttered Coco’s on Bristol Street. The Newport Beach location is in the same crowded strip center anchored by popular restaurants Moulin and Juliette Kitchen & Bar.
“We were very lucky,” co-owner Donatella Barone said about securing a nearby location.
Last summer, Barone and her husband, Franco, didn’t feel so fortunate.
Their MacArthur Square landlord had hoped to redevelop the property on Martingale Way with a high-rise tower. But in July the Newport Beach City Council shot down the project, which called for a 384-apartment complex and retail space. Il Barone and its Italian market, Barone Bottega, would have been part of the retail development.
“We were heart broken when it was denied,” Donatella Barone said.
She and her husband began looking for a new location soon after the council vote. Panic set in over the holidays when the Barones learned that their landlord was selling the building. It sold within a month.
“We died. We were in deep depression,” Donatella Barone said.
Il Barone is as old school as it gets.
Donatella greets regulars like family, giving them warm hugs at the door. While she’s charming diners in the front of the house, her husband is in the kitchen whipping up classic Italian American dishes from spaghetti carbonara to veal Milanese.
Often, guests are speaking Italian at the table. Orange County executives have sealed important deals here since it opened seven years ago.
“This is our life,” she said of the restaurant.
In January, they got discouraged when they couldn’t find a location close to MacArthur Square, which has seen many tenants flee. They didn’t want to move far, as the restaurant’s core lunch business relies on powerful clients who work nearby.
“This is where deals happen,” Donatella said.
Then, “buona fortuna” smiled on them: The owner of the Coco’s building approached the couple about taking over the space. They jumped at the chance.
The 5,000-square foot coffee house is nearly double the size of the current restaurant. A 4-seat bar will double in size, and a larger kitchen will allow chef Barone to dream big, his wife said. He envisions adding a pasta room and pizza oven.
“He has huge plans,” Donatella said during a phone interview this week.
Once the couple gets the keys on Thursday, they will begin renovation.
The menu and decor will embrace the same “fine dining cuisine with a casual flair” of the current restaurant, she said.
Il Barone will remain open at its current location until they move at the end of May. The 90-seat Coco’s space will give the new restaurant about 20 extra seats, plus a patio – something they never had. Their Italian market next-door, Barone Bottega, is not relocating to the new space.
They plan to expand on the bottega concept at Pacific City in Huntington Beach, where their new restaurant Il Barone Italian Street Food is expected to open later this month, Donatella said. The more casual restaurant, located at the luxury center’s Lot 579 food hall, will sell whole pizzas, pizza by the slice, salads, pastas and calzones.
Contact the writer: nluna@scng.com
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