Arrabiatas Serves Up Homestyle Italian Cuisine In A Family-Friendly Atmosphere Story by Chris Felker • Photos by Abner Pedraza
Two longtime restaurant collaborators teamed up two years ago to open Arrabiatas Italian Restaurant in suburban Boynton Beach and bring a taste of New York homestyle Italian cuisine to the area. The always busy restaurant is a testament to the fact that they have appealed to that old home base — and then some. Co-owner Dave Tranes keeps an eye on the hostesses ushering patrons to tables and surveys the wait staff bustling around. He wasn’t hard to pick out as a restaurateur who puts a premium on prompt, thoughtful service. 70
september 2015 | wellington the magazine
“Everything’s being executed correctly in the back of the house, so I don’t have to worry about that,” Tranes said, giving credit to his business partner, Chef Jimmy. “And the front-of-thehouse staff, a lot of them have been with me since day one.” Some even date back to a previous restaurant. Chef Jimmy is a former coowner of Campagnolo, which had locations in Wellington and Boca Raton. His cousin, Brian Scotto, was the Arrabiatas chef on duty the night we visited. Tranes moved to Florida 10 years ago after earning a degree in criminal
justice, a field he decided against pursuing. “I worked for my partner for 10 years when he had the Campagnolo restaurants, and we developed a bond,” he explained. The restaurant’s name foreshadows the signature spicy dishes to come. “Arrabiata is just a marinara sauce with cherry peppers. It’s a little bit spicy sauce, and has a nice kick to it. That’s what’s behind the name.” Not to worry. If you’re not a fan of spicy food, Arrabiatas caters to all palates. We started with the mozzarella and