Reno’s is a taste of Calabria on Pirie Street
The owner of the CBD’s latest ‘grab and go’ option spoke to CityMag about how his family’s influence shaped the Reno’s brand.
Family is built into everything about Reno’s.
“I’d be lying if I didn’t think my family was a nightmare just like every other family,” says Reno’s owner, Frankie Marafioti.
“But I do have a really beautiful family”.
Coming from a large Calabrian family, hosting is a quality built into Frankie’s genes.
“We have 60 to 70 close family members. Doing parties and dinners every weekend was where the idea of hospitality really kicked in for me,” he says.
The newly opened Reno’s is lovingly named after owners Frankie and Claudia’s father, who instilled entrepreneurial mindsets in his children from day one.
“My family have always been business owners. I learnt what it means to be your own boss from a young age and the work ethic that it takes”, says Frankie.
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“Our grandmother, who passed away in September, was a big influence in our life in terms of food and hospitality,” says Frankie.
“Her eggplant parmigiana is one of the main dishes for us, which is also Reno’s favourite.”
This picture: Simon Cecere, supplied.
Originally, the Reno’s brand was going to be “this high-class kind of hidden gangster restaurant,” but after plans for a private dining venue fell through, owners pivoted their vision to provide great quality food “but with a bit of a playful, not-so-high-end twist.”
Recognising a lack of quality grab-and-go options in Adelaide’s CBD, the Reno’s team endeavours to dish up traditional Calabrian meals in takeaway form.
“We’re going to be doing eight to ten salads on rotation daily,” says Frankie.
Passionate about the menu they’ve curated, Frankie says his favourites include “a chimichurri beef which is unbelievable, and the yoghurt-marinated chicken is really crazy good”.
Reno’s covers all bases, serving up food from breakfast through to dinner.
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Reno’s focaccia might taste familiar to punters that frequent Frankie’s other hospo venture, Blueprint on Flinders Street.
“We bake all our own bread, and it’s been a big hero for what we do,” Frankie says.
One cheeky feature of the bistro is their aptly displayed ‘House Rules’, featuring a list of ten polices for diners to note, including the final and most important: “Jokes are fine. Just don’t make ‘em about Reno.”
“Reno is a jokester,” says Frankie.
“He’s always a clown wanting to play around with anyone. The only problem is that Reno doesn’t like jokes about himself.”
When asked whether Reno was humble about having an establishment dedicated to him, Frankie said: “Oh no, no, he’s not humble one bit.”
Reno’s was kept a secret from its namesake until just before its launch.
“He had no idea about it. We kept it a secret for a year and a half while we were going through the negotiations and the build stages,” says Frankie.
Since then, Reno has been implementing his word-of-mouth advertising strategy abundantly.
Frankie says, “He won’t take the Reno’s t-shirts off, and he keeps telling everybody that he’s got a venue named after him.”
Reno’s is located on 45 Pirie St in the lobby of an unassuming office complex and is open 7am ’til 4pm Monday to Wednesday, and from 7am ’til late on Thursday and Friday.