Photo From Facebook
SEYMOUR — Executive chef Attilio Marini knows his way around a cast iron skillet and is set to bring his culinary skills to a new restaurant.
Marini, 52, owner/executive chef at Cast Iron Chef Chop House & Oyster Bar in New Haven, will be opening Cast Iron Chef Pizza & Bar in the Klarides Village Plaza. The name may sound familiar to some, as Marini opened his first Cast Iron Pizza a couple years ago at the Connecticut Post Mall.
Marini anticipates opening the new place in the former Mags Pizza space, located at 15 Klarides Dr. (off of Route 67), by the end of March.
“I live by the cast iron,” Marini told the Valley Indy during a recent interview. “I took the whole New Haven pizza thing and just tried to recreate it in a cast iron pan.”
The result is a super-thin, extra crispy crust, with a slightly browned bottom, that stays hot much longer than pizza traditionally cooked in coal-fired or brick ovens, Marini says.
“My pizza has some of the nuances of New Haven pizza, but it doesn’t have the char; you get the crispiness, and it’s really unique,” Marini said. “Our pizza comes out with a sizzle and that’s the best part. Until someone can prove me wrong, I’m the only one in the state doing this.”
In addition to pizza, Marini’s menu is going to include burgers, wings, salads and weekly surprise items, like his mother Marisa’s lasagna. And just like Mags, Cast Iron will also feature live music.
“All I’m here to do is give people another pizza experience, my version of a pizza experience,” Marini said.
Marini, the father of two grown daughters, has spent decades perfecting his recipes in his own home kitchen, with help from his mom.
Contributed Photo
(Left to right) Nicole Klarides-Ditria, Attilio Marini, Karin Klarides Marinaro
Though he studied finance in college and thought he’d pursue a career in law, Marini said he’s always been drawn to cooking. The self-taught chef moved from his native Montreal to Bridgeport in the late 1970s, and opened his first restaurant, named after his mom, in 1989.
Marini brought cast iron cooking to the New Haven restaurant scene in 2017 with the opening of Cast Iron Chop House. The restaurant has become renowned for its Porterhouse for 2 specialty. Marini read in a culinary magazine years ago that steak should never be cooked over an open flame.
Marini said he’s excited to open his restaurant in Seymour. And, judging by the huge Facebook response after Seymour First Selectwoman Annmarie Drugonis recently posted that Cast Iron was coming, he’s not the only one.
“The response has literally been overwhelming, we didn’t expect there to be so much love for us,” Marini said.
Marini has partnered with chefs Skye Kwok and Tommy Nguyen, along with Frank DelMastro as his manager for the new Cast Iron. He wasn’t really looking for another location after the Cast Iron closed at the Post Mall, but an opportunity came up when Mags’ closed last November, and Marini decided to go for it.
“The idea to expand the Cast Iron Chef brand was always there, and the right opportunity just came along and everything just kind of snowballed from there,” Marini said.
Marini said the interior of the 4,000-square-foot space is undergoing some minor renovations and will include some of his personal cast iron touches. Marini’s famous spicy popcorn he puts out on each table before the main course will also make its debut in Seymour. He expects to employ about 20 people here.
Marini also hopes to share his love of cast iron cooking on a national scale, and recently shot a pilot for a TV show he’s currently shopping to find a market.
Drugonis is excited to welcome Marini to Seymour.
“Attilio is an established restaurateur; he has the name recognition and the following and we’re so excited and cannot wait for him to come here,” Drugonis said. “This is going to be a place where all generations can go for great food and live music.”
State Rep. Nicole Klarides-Ditria, one of the owners of Klarides village recently tried Marini’s carbonara and cheese cast iron pizza at his New Haven restaurant. She gave the pie rave reviews.
“Unbelievable- it’s in my top three favorite pizzas,” she said. “Cast Iron Chef will be a social place where people can gather and enjoy a meal together. It will create a vibrant and welcoming atmosphere in the plaza and encourage customers to spend more time there.”
More information about Cast Iron can be found on Facebook.
