Via Alloro
Twenty years ago the Drago family name was introduced to the Los Angeles restaurant scene and has been a staple ever since. Renowned chefs/restaurateurs, brother’s Giacomino and Tanino Drago own eight restaurants collectively, all very successful including Tanino in Westwood and Il Pastaio in Beverly Hills.  Now they are collaborating on their newest venture with a fresh new look and feel named Via Alloro  located at 01 Canon Drive on the corner of Dayton Way in Beverly Hills.  The restaurant will open its doors in January 2009.
The Drago history goes back many generations to the town of Galati Mamertino in Messina, a region in Sicily. Giacomino and Tanino are part of an amazing culinary family and are two of eight brothers and sisters.  The house that they were born and raised in is the same house that their parents still live in today.  The name of the restaurant, Via Alloro is historical as it is named after the street they grew up on along with many other relatives.  Alloro in Italian means bay leaf, a spice that is an essential part of Italian cooking and will play a role in numerous recipes.

Tanino Drago at Via Alloro

Tanino and Giacomino Drago at Via Alloro

Giacomino Drago Biography:

Giacomino Drago is the youngest of eight children from the small town of Galati Mamertino in Sicily's Messina region where the family grew and made almost everything they ate; from pressing olives to make olive oil, to making fresh cheeses, to watching his father make wine from their own vineyards.
Even before the age of 11, when Giacomino began cooking at the family's area restaurant Portella Gazzana until the age of 16, Giacomino showed great interest in the family kitchen experimenting with risotto from locally harvested Porcini mushrooms, even though his first few attempts didn't exactly pan out.
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Tanino Drago Biography:

Thousands of miles away from his native Sicily, the 30-year-old chef and owner of his namesake Tanino Ristorante and Bar has created a true gem of a place to celebrate Italian cooking, eating and passion for life. Reminiscent of his childhood days in the small town of Galati, located in the Messina region of Sicily, Tanino Ristorante and Bar is flavored with the sights, tastes and smells that allow each guest to enjoy a little of Tanino's rich background.

Born the sixth child into a lively household of six sons and two daughters, the son of a farmer father and a homemaker mother with an appreciation for fine, homemade Italian foods, young Tanino learned early to savor the precious bounty and delicate flavors of his homeland.
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