La Fontana Del Mare’s cuisine “better than from the old country”
Pat O’Hara owns two Uncle Bill’s restaurants, one of which sits adjacent to La Fontana Del Mare in Strathmere. Over the past 13 years, O’Hara has had five tenants occupy the building, starting with the Italian Fisherman.
“He was in there for three years and simply outgrew the building,” O’Hara said.
Over the course of the next three years, three restaurants came and went, unable to find their niche in the market.
This summer, however, marks the seventh season for La Fontana Del Mare, an authentic, gourmet Italian restaurant that continues to grow its business.
“They serve great food, they have a great atmosphere and they just do a super job,” O’Hara said. “They’re there every day, and that’s the key to it, the owners are on the site all the time. Other owners want to open a restaurant and only stop by to pick up the money. Well, you can’t do that anymore.”
La Fontana Del Mare is owned and operated by Fausto Berardi and Bujar Daku, who is the chef. Berardi, the manager, is from southern Italy; Daku is from Albania but he trained and worked in northern Italy.
“It makes for a nice mix because we cover all the cuisine from Italy. The food in the south is much different than it is in the north,” Berardi said.
Asked how it compares to authentic Italian food, as opposed to Americanized Italian food, the duo said they have stuck with traditional recipes reminiscent of Italy’s various regions and cultures.
“Our customers tell us it is better than from old country,” Daku said, a former chef at La Veranda and La Buca, both Philadelphia restaurants.
Berardi and Daku met when they were both at Randazo’s in Ocean City. They were helping a friend manage the business, they said, when the building across from The Deauville Inn and Uncle Bill’s became available. They decided they wanted to go into business together, and that the timing was right…until they opened the doors and peeked inside.
“It looked like a dungeon,” Berardi said with a laugh.
“It wasn’t very classy room,” said Daku, in his halting English. “First time we open doors we knew we had to redecorate. We fixed up whole dining room.”
“We made it cheery, and added some charm,” Berardi said.
It didn’t take long for the public to respond.
“After two weeks of being open, business was good,” said Daku, now a Swainton resident.
Customers travel to Strathmere—with a remarkable number of good restaurants along the tiny strip of barrier island—for Daku’s creations from as far south as Cape May and as far north as Atlantic City and Downbeach.
“They come from all over,” said Berardi, who lives in Seaville. “Someone will come in, and then their friends or family will come in next because our customers go home impressed, very pleased and satisfied. We treat every customer like family.”
Asked what it is about the cuisine that people are responding to, Berardi didn’t hesitate.
“It’s all about his (Daku’s) flavors and sauces, how he cooks everything to perfection…it’s the blend of everything coming together,” he said.
Daku added: “We use the highest quality ingredients. We use top of the line everything, we do not cut corners.”
That might cut into the immediate profit margin, but Berardi doesn’t mind.
“It costs more, so we don’t make as much as we could on each dish, but that’s OK,” he said as he sat back in his chair with a smile. “We’ll make it in the long run because our customers keep coming back. They appreciate the difference. They also appreciate our service staff. Our servers are not part-timers, they are professional waiters, and they’re very good. We’re very proud of them.”
After five years in a transient business, especially in a building with a history of turnover, Daku and Berardi say they have no intention of packing up and moving.
“We’re here for life,” Berardi said.
LA FONTANA DEL MARE
1 Commonwealth Dr.
Strathmere
263-7700
ON THE MENU
Hours: Open daily from 4 to 11 p.m. until late September, when they’ll
open Thursday to Sunday through October.
Chef’s Favorites: Appetizers—Frutti Di Mare Alla Fontana (sautéed clams, mussels, shrimp, calamari and crabmeat in a white or red sauce, $14.95), Calamari Fritti (fried calamari served with marinara, $9.95) or Grilled Calamari ($10.95), Pasta E Fagiole ($5.50), Antipasti Del Mercato (serves two, $13.95); Entrées—Costolette D’Angello (rack of lamb in a Barolo wine and rosemary sauce, $26.95), Osso Buco (baked veal shanks in a brown sauce with mushrooms and rice, $25.95), Gnocchi Al Gorgonzola (homemade potato pasta with gorgonzola and Mascarpone sauce, $17.95), Vitello Alla Fontana (veal with Parma prosciutto, mozzarella in a Porcini mushroom sauce, $23.95), Langostino (grilled large Mediterranean shrimp—the chef describes it as a cross between lobster and shrimp, market price), Tonno Alla Siciliana (grilled filet of tuna served with tomatoes and olives, $24.95), and Tilapia (St. Peter’s fish in a white sauce with sun dried tomatoes, spinach and mushrooms, $24.95); Desserts—Homemade Tiramisu, and Cream Brulee.
Parking: Small
on-site lot, street parking
Capacity: 110
Credit/Debit Cards:
All major
Reservations:
Strongly recommended, running about two to three weeks in advance for
weekends.
BYOB
Rob Seitzinger can be e-mailed
at seitz[at]catamaranmedia.com or you can comment on this story by
calling 624-8900, ext. 250.
Check out his Cape Cuisine food blog