Piero’s Pasta House is summer mainstay

He cooks, she serves at Piero’s Pasta House, a summer mainstay in Geneva-on-the-Lake

It’s far from the fanciest place to eat in Geneva-on-the-Lake, but loyal diners, will swear it’s the best.

It’s far from the fanciest place to eat in Geneva-onthe-Lake, but loyal diners, who come from near and far, will swear it’s the best.

Customers pay cash because no credit cards are accepted.

Piero’s Pasta House — tucked next to the marquee of a one-time movie house, near the eastern end of the storied Strip — is basically a one-man operation when it comes to the kitchen.

Gianpiero Piras presides at a grill and stovetop behind what appears to be a one-time lunch counter moving in a rhythm that must be seen to be believed. One of the newspaper stories hung around the small space dubbed him “Octopus man” for the way he seems to have many more than just two arms as he prepares meals. He’s called “JP” by his many friends.

Wife Cindy serves and takes orders, sometimes with help from another server. Two dishwashers keep up with cutlery and glasses in back. Food is served on heavy-duty disposable plastic plates, many of which become togo plates for leftovers.

This summer, for the first time, Gianpiero has an assistant in his small kitchen.

“Having someone there helps take off the stress,” said Cindy.

What began as a labor of love for the Piras couple two decades ago has evolved into what must sometimes seem a curse, as customers wait out on the sidewalk for a table, after following their noses to Piero’s Pasta House. The garlic used in many of the dishes wafts out onto the street, mingling with the carnival-style scents of popcorn and elephant ears.

“I lose 20 pounds just working each summer,” said Gianpiero, who soon turns 70. “I’d love to find someone interested in taking this over, but no one else wants to work this hard.”

Cindy said the couple hopes to perhaps attract another couple as partners.

In winter, the Piras’ live in Delray Beach, Florida, moving there after Gianpiero retired from his longtime maitre’d position with an exclusive private club in Miami. They return to Northeast Ohio every summer to visit Cindy’s

family, many of whom still live in east of Cleveland.

Gianpiero’s Italian accent still is strong even though he’s lived in this country for many years. Raised on the Italian island of Sardinia, where he acquired his lifelong appreciation for seafood, he lived there until his early 20s — when he joined a cruise line to serve as a dining room maitre’d while seeing the world. He met Cindy when she was aboard one of his Caribbean cruises, and, they say, it was love at first sight for both of them.

Gianpiero began the restaurant as a way to indulge his food passion while staying busy in the summer. By way of supplying his kitchen with the best and freshest ingredients, as is the custom in Italy, he met and established relationships with growers and purveyors of everything from vegetables to meats and cheeses.

“Gianpiero seems to know everyone and does well on the provisioning end,” Cindy said.

A signature dish is his fennel-infused ground sausage cream sauce with cognac and sage over penne pasta. Customers also gobble up his mussels preparations, lobster ravioli and fish dishes.

The upcoming July Fourth week is one of the busiest for Geneva-on-theLake and for Piero’s Pasta House. This year, the resort community is getting many visitors from Columbus, Pittsburgh and Youngstown, as well as Lake County and Cleveland suburbs.

“We’ll be open Tuesday and Wednesday that week, as well as our usual Thursday-through-Sunday hours,” Cindy said.

The menu is handwritten on a whiteboard above the cooking area.

“This year, we are getting things from Sardinia by way of an importer friend in Sandusky,” Cindy said.

The restaurant does not accept reservations but people who call and ask for Cindy often can find out when they expect to be least busy.

“I keep the books, and we know that if we sold 40 pounds of mussels on a certain day in July last year, it will be the same this year,” she said.

JANET PODOLAK — THE NEWS-HERALD This mixed seafood pasta is a customer favorite, although a signature dish at Piero’s Pasta House is a sauce of ground fennel sausage in creamy parmesan with cognac.

JANET PODOLAK — THE NEWS-HERALD Gianpiero and Cindy Piras have operated Piero’s Pasta House in Geneva-on-the-Lake for 22 years.

JANET PODOLAK — THE NEWS-HERALD JP, as Gianpiero Piras is known by his many friends, plates a dinner at the counter of his popular Geneva-on-the-Lake restaurant.

JANET PODOLAK — THE NEWS-HERALD A sign at the entrance to Piero’s Pasta House tells of the day’s specials, which change with the available ingredients.