After nearly 2-year closure, La Calabria reopens today in new Gilbert location

La Calabria Ristorante, a well-liked mom-and-pop Italian restaurant that closed nearly two years ago, reopens today on the southwest corner of Val Vista and Williams Field in Gilbert.

Owners Giovanni and Clara Spataro closed their original location – which was located a mile north of the new one – in September 2015 when they were unable to negotiate a new lease.

After taking some time off, including a two-month trip to Europe, the couple found a new strip-mall space for their restaurant just south of High Tide Seafood.

The new location is slightly smaller – 3,100 square feet compared to the original’s 3,400 – but has a larger dining room and what Giovanni Spataro calls a ‘‘real’’ bar (shown below).

Spataro, a native of Calabria (the region of southern Italy that forms the toe of the “boot”), still heads the kitchen and has kept his previous menu of pastas, sandwiches, and entrees mostly intact. See the lunch menu and dinner menu.

The 12-seat bar has six beers on tap, including Peroni; two dozen wines; and a variety of espresso drinks.

Lunch hours are 11 a.m.-3 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday. Dinner hours are 4-9 p.m. Tuesday-Sunday (until 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday).