Brothers have built foundation for success with Brick House
There’s a new standard of dining in town, and judged by the crowds, it’s already a celebrated success story.
The Brick House, owned by Geno and Franco Cassella, is located on School Street across from the movie theater.
The owners are not new to the restaurant scene nor to the area. Both brothers were born and raised in Stockton.
Their father was no stranger to the Lodi business locale either. He once owned Geno’s II Stud nightclub where the Lodi Stadium 12 Cinema now stands and also Geno’s on Beckman Road.
Geno attended Tokay High School and both of his sons graduated from Bear Creek in the Lodi Unified School District. Being ambitious and good students, they earned their degrees in managerial economics from the University of California, Davis.
But the restaurant business was not in their immediate sights. After graduation, the brothers got jobs at a large Fortune 500 company. Yet after a few years, extensive traveling started to take its toll. Geno was married with children and wanted something to keep him closer to home.
Coming from a traditional Italian heritage, he liked cooking and experimenting with various traditional dishes.
Experience growing up in my own Italian family was that after a great meal, someone at the table would say: That was delizioso! We should open a restaurant!
While we never did, Geno told me a similar experience happened with his relatives, except the brothers eventually retorted, “Sure, let’s do it!”
The first step was to find a good location.
Several sites were considered, but one thing was certain: They did not want a strip mall ambiance but instead, something that would symbolize an old world atmosphere.
A century-old brick building in Old Town Elk Grove, which once was a Model T Ford dealership, seemed like the perfect location. The structure needed a complete renovation, and by 2006, the Cassellas were open for business.
Things were not easy at first. Continued experimentation with the homemade recipes was an ongoing process. Various other issues arose — the same problems found with any startup business. But after four or five years, the restaurant became profitable and continues to be successful today.
Because of the thriving Elk Grove operation, the brothers contemplated a second location. Other towns were considered, but things just seemed to work out for Lodi. The Brick House theme would be easily continued while established in a historic downtown business building.
Several months of renovation finally led to the opening last September. Overall, customers are very pleased with the food, service, along with reasonable prices for a quality restaurant located in a prime location.
A variety of dining choices are available on the menu, leaving few customers disappointed. Geno prides himself on his homemade recipes. His traditional spaghetti sauce is a Genovese style that reminds me very much of what my Italian grandmother used to make. Being old school, she would spend two days getting it “salsa perfetta.”
No packaged pasta for the Brick House. All of it is also homemade right in the kitchen.
Geno carefully supervises all recipes, and the food is as consistent as it can be — considering all of the variables that can take place in a restaurant atmosphere.
He says the number one specialty of the house is surprisingly not Italian, but beef stroganoff. He tells me regular customers come back again and again for the same dish.
But one specialty that is difficult, if not impossible to find anywhere else, is his homemade spumoni. It’s creamy gelato-like texture, along with an abundance of candied fruit, is hard to beat.
The restaurant opens as 4 p.m., and on weekends, the bar is already jumping. Reservations for dinner are definitely advisable. Lunch is not served right now, but is expected to happen sometime during the month of February. Catering services are also available.
The only drawback of the place is the terrible downtown parking, which seems to get worse as businesses grow. But Geno has even solved that problem by getting permission from the Lodi City Council to provide valet services. Cost is reasonable, and cars are always parked in a safe location.