From Cowboys to charcuterie: Bella Gusto Urban Pizzeria opens today in Chandler

Bella Gusto Urban Pizzeria, one of this year’s new East Valley restaurants I’m most excited about, opened today on the southwest corner of Alma School and Warner in Chandler.

It takes over the space at the sound end of the strip mall that formerly was home to Copper Kettle, which moved to Tempe in 2014.

The chef-owners are Matt Nobile and John Araujo (pictured above), both of whom have extensive restaurant experience.

Nobile’s career highlights include working in Las Vegas under celeb chefs Bobby Flay and Mario Batali before moving to Texas to become senior sous chef for the NFL’s Dallas Cowboys.

Araujo was a banquet chef for the Cowboys before taking a job as corporate research and development sous chef for Texas-based Romano’s Macaroni Grill.

For the past two years, Araujo has been chef and kitchen manager for Cane Rosso, voted the best pizzeria in Dallas for five years in a row.

Bella Gusto’s starters include calamari in picanta marinara ($12), burrata with apricot mustarda and oven-fired foccacia ($12), and bruschetta on house-made rustic Italian bread ($10).

House-made charcuterie and cheese boards are $22:

• Formaggi: Dolce gorgonzola, grana padano, pecorino, goat cheese, brie, fontina, fresh mozzarella (three each)
• Carne: Coppa, mortadella, prosciutto crudo, brescola, Italian salami, spicy soppressata (three each)

There are 13 specialty pizzas – seven with white sauce, six with red – ranging from $12-$16, including:

• The Dr. Seuss with quail egg, house-made mortadella, and shaved grana padano cheese.
• The Triple P with back fat bacon, goat cheese, figs, roasted mushrooms, arugula, and pickled red onion.
• The Sicilian House with Bella Gusto’s signature meatballs, spicy soppressetta, and ricotta cheese.
• The Veggie Panzanella with roasted mushrooms, sun-dried tomato jam, squash blossoms, artichokes, and red onion.

Fresh pasta dishes ($12-$13) include Gusto bolognese, orecchiette bolognese, and pappardelle with house-made pancetta.

There also are a half-dozen panini sandwiches ($9.50-$12), including two signature creations: The Nobile Milanese (pictured) and Araujo’s Polpetta.

Desserts ($6-$10) are highlighted by sticky toffee pudding cake, cinnamon apple roulade, and two kinds of pie:

• Special K with vanilla mascarpone, roasted pears, salted caramel, and powdered sugar.
• Ula Lula with vanilla mascarpone, creamy peanut butter, serrano-strawberry jam, and powdered sugar.

The bar offers two dozen mostly Italian wines, local craft beers by the bottle, and house-made sangria and limoncello.

Bella Gusto is open 11 a.m.-9 p.m. Monday-Thursday, 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Friday-Saturday, and 11 a.m.-3 p.m. Sunday.