Joe’s Italian – All in the Family

by Shelbyco Magazine

For more than 40 years, Giuseppe “Joe” and Elvira “Mamma” Bertolone have been honing the art of Italian cooking. The charismatic couple, whom emigrated from Italy in 1977, owned and operated the original Joe’s Italian for 27 years in Gilroy, California, becoming a local favorite for many diners. In 2008, their children Sonia, Michael, and Mary Bertolone opened Joe’s in Alabaster (and subsequently, Lucia’s in Helena), sharing the family’s love of Italian home-cooking with us here in Shelby County.

“When you come here, you’re part of the family,” said Sonia. “Our staff, our guests… everyone who comes into Joe’s has a place in our family.”

Personally, I vividly remember my first encounter with Joe’s—my husband, who is not the Italian-food fanatic that I am, had not stopped raving about it since eating there with his mother. Thinking 6:30 would be plenty early, we pulled up to Joe’s one evening expecting an average weeknight dinner crowd; however the packed parking lot and line out the door was anything but typical. I knew then that we were onto something.

As we walked inside to put our names on the list, I was overtaken by the delicious aromas wafting out of the kitchen. Clearly, this was going to be a meal worth waiting for. We stepped aside and I began to take in the atmosphere of Joe’s Italian.

Almost instantly, Joe came by and warmly welcomed us in. His still-thick accent said everything I needed to hear. I watched him shuffle around the restaurant, greeting everyone with a giant grin as he checked to make sure his dinner guests were enjoying their meals. Moments later, Mamma, in her classic white apron, came rushing out into the lobby from behind large swinging double doors. In one hand, she had a pitcher of Sprite™, a stack of glasses in the other. She quickly began offering beverages to those waiting for a table, splashing in some red wine for the adults who nodded in approval. I knew she was great—and then I had her strawberry cake. Joe and Mamma seemed to treat the restaurant like it was their dining room at home; like they were having a dinner party and I had gotten an invitation. Until then, I had never felt so welcome in a restaurant.

The Family Legacy

It all began in 1967. Joe Bertolone had been living in England, where he spent much of the mid-sixties learning the art of cooking at an Italian restaurant in London’s famous Piccadilly Circus. Early that year, a young and lively Joe returned to Italy for a visit with his family.

During his visit home to Liguria, Joe went into the café where the young and beautiful Elvira was employed as a cooking apprentice. “It was love at first sight. She was working behind the counter, so I ordered a whiskey from her,” Joe said, his accent still heavy after all these years. Not wanting to leave her sight, he ordered a second drink. “She gave it to me, but said ‘Hey, take it easy’.” He knew she would be a tough one. Joe returned to the café later that same night, hoping that Elvira would talk to him after she got off work. Since she was still on the clock, he had another drink while he built up the courage to ask her out. “She said ‘no’, so I told her ‘okay, I’ll come back tomorrow.” That is what he did. After several attempts, she finally relented to his request and went out with him. The rest is history.

For six months, the young amorous couple maintained a long-distance relationship, until Joe could move back home to Italy for good. Less than a year from the day they met, he and Elvira were married and the legacy of Joe’s Italian had begun.

Cooking Up a Plan

In 1968, the blissful new couple honeymooned in California. They decided then and there that they wanted to become citizens and begin their new life together as Americans. But things of that nature do not move quickly.

Nearly a decade passed before the Bertolone’s decision to emigrate to the U.S. became a reality. By 1977, when they finally flew into New York City as American residents, they already had two children. “I vividly remember being handed my green card,” said Sonia, who was just seven when they arrived. Her brother Michael was only five. From there, the family flew on to their destination of Gilroy, CA. “My uncle Michael, an American citizen for years by then, owned Caesar’s Pizzeria there,” said Sonia. Both Joe and Mamma went straight to work for Joe’s brother at his restaurant.

Life for the Bertolones seemed to be rolling along, according to plan; but no one could see the coming storm on the horizon.

“Mom and Dad are the two hardest working people I know,” said Sonia. Before coming to America, the couple worked tirelessly to make sure they had plenty for their new life. While waiting for their emigration paperwork to finalize, Joe and Mamma ran a fresh fruit and vegetable market in Savona, Italy, saving their money and planning for future investments. “Dad’s got a lot of business sense,” Sonia said.

They had not been in America long when they learned the terrible truth about their  financial situation: there was nothing left. Mismanagement of their savings by someone close to the Bertolone family forced Joe and Mamma to face starting over from scratch, in a new country, with two children and a new baby, Mary, who was born in 1978. As difficult as it was, they made do. With the help of Joe’s sister-in-law, ‘Aunt Frances’, the Bertolones were able to break ground on their own restaurant endeavor the following year. The original Joe’s Italian opened its doors in Gilroy, the ‘garlic capital of the world’, in 1981.

Serving It Up Italian-Style

From day one, each member of the Bertolone family dedicated much of their time to working the long hours it takes to run a restaurant. “When Joe’s opened, I was ten and Michael was eight, so we pretty much grew up in the restaurant,” said Sonia, “but since she was so much younger, Mary really did grow up there.” Much of their childhood was spent learning the ropes, preparing ultimately for their own Joe’s venture down the road. Michael instantly took to learning his father’s trade. “I started rolling out pizza dough when I was eight,” he said.

Since the beginning, Joe’s has been focused on doing Italian right. The lasagna is made from scratch in the traditional style taught in Italy. Many dishes, such as the Spaghetti Aglio, Olio, and Peperoncino, are inspired by cuisine in Calabria, the Southern region of Italy where Mamma spent most of her young life. Calabrian-style dishes are simple, yet flavorful and are characterized by a few, fresh ingredients that complement each other well. “Every day we try to improve the dishes,” Joe said. “When we think it is just right… no way. It can always be better.” Perhaps that is a large part of their recipe for success.

Operating on the philosophy of cooking with fresh, quality ingredients and providing excellent customer service in a family environment, it’s no wonder Joe’s Italian quickly became a beloved local landmark. A blurb on their menu circa 1985 professed this fact. It read, “A full house every night and noon is testimony that Joe’s is one of the most popular restaurants in Gilroy.” The success of Joe’s spurred them to open a second location in Hollister, CA in 1986.

In 1989, Joe’s was featured in an American Folklife Center/Library of Congress travelling exhibit entitled Italian-Americans in the West. The research project commemorated the 500th anniversary of Christopher Columbus’ voyage to America. According to official records, the project was intended “to document aspects of traditional cultural expression of Italian Americans in the western United States.”

Twice during Joe’s heyday in the nineties, Mamma and Sonia teamed up at the annual Garlic Festival to compete against other cooks on the Food Network show Ready, Set, Cook. “One time, we were given a banana, couscous, a red bell pepper, and some chicken to make a meal,” Sonia recalled. “We made a sort of sweet-and-sour style chicken. We won both times.”

Passing It On

As much as Joe and Mamma loved running their restaurant in California, they began to feel the pull of family after their daughters moved to Alabama. “In 2002, they came to visit out of the blue,” Sonia said. “They bought a house in Montevallo because they fell in love with it here.” Five years later, Joe and Mamma sold their restaurant and retired to Alabama. Michael and his family were not far behind.

All together again, the second generation joined forces to bring Joe’s to Alabama three years ago. Even in “retirement”, Joe and Mamma are always there, working and sharing their love of Italian cuisine with guests. “We love it too much to stay away,” said Joe. Clearly, his and Mamma’s “retirement” was not the end of Joe’s. For us, it was just the beginning.

 
My name is Sonia Bertolone and I am the owner of Joe's Italian in Alabaster, Alabama where you can always fine your little piece of authentic Italian cooking.