An acclaimed chef is debuting a new Italian restaurant with a truly original approach. Called Miss Pasta, it's from chef Giuliano Matarese and his wife Tiziana Cosentino, and will open in the Shire complex at 3613 Shire Blvd. #100 in Richardson.

UPDATE 11/28/2023: Miss Pasta is now open.

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A native of Naples, Matarese worked on the East Coast at restaurants such as Charlie Palmer's Aureole in New York before coming to Dallas, and has also appeared on cooking shows such as Chopped and Beat Bobby Flay.

He earned local notice as a partner in Mille Lire, the Italian restaurant in the Centrum building in Oak Lawn that he opened with his brother-in-law Brian Ellard in 2017; it closed during COVID in 2020.

Matarese comes from a restaurant family: His cousin Enzo owns a Neapolitan Pizzeria called La Notizia, found in the Michelin Guide, and his great grandmother and grandmother owned restaurants in Naples.

With Miss Pasta, Matarese and Cosentino want to offer the handmade pasta that is a family tradition but in a semi-fast-casual setting and at an approachable price.

"All my life, I've worked in fine dining, but I want to make an incredible pasta experience available to everyone," he says. "This will be a neighborhood Italian kitchen specializing in fresh homemade pasta. But you'll order at the counter and when your food is ready, we will deliver it to the table."

He values the idea not only of a more affordable meal but also one in which the experience is more immediate, inspired by the osterias common in Rome.

"It's an opportunity to have authentic Italian food and experience but in a casual way," he says.

The menu will incorporate family recipes from Matarese's grandmother's restaurants that he had as a child, as well as dishes from different regions of Italy: cacio e pepe, carbonara, Bolognese, gnocchi, lasagna — "but everything made fresh," he says. "You'll be able to see all the pasta, freshly made, displayed behind a window. Once you order, we'll drop it in the water and then serve it with authentic Italian sauces."

Miss Pasta chef Giuliano Matarese has his eye on pasta.Courtesy photo

Ravioli, gnocchi, spaghetti — everything will be made daily. "Anyone who has spent time in Italy knows how Italian food has to be, and we are focused on that authenticity," he says.

Another major component at Miss Pasta will be their to-go option. "Takeout will be a significant part of the operation," Matarese says.

They'll partner with third-party delivery companies such as DoorDash, so that you can get all of their pasta delivered, along with a bottle of wine, if you so desire.

They've formed an alliance with a small winery in Tuscany, whose wines they will feature.

"Villa Svetoni is a beautiful vineyard in Tuscany, they make montepulciano, sangiovese, rose, all from the same area, we spend time between here and there, and want to to show where we come from," he says.

A friend recommended the space at the Shire, and the couple liked its central location and proximity to businesses and residential. Their goal is to open other Miss Pastas down the road.

They're still in construction and hope to be open in mid-October. The space will be clean but warm, with black & white photos but also greenery and flowers.

"The main focus will be the open space where diners can see the process before their eyes," Matarese says. "To see the kitchen take the fresh pasta on display, cook it, make the sauce, see the action and the freshness of the ingredients."

"We love the Dallas-Fort Worth dining scene and I don't feel like there's anything quite like this," he says. "A nice dish of pasta with an authentic flavor served this way. I think about sitting down at home with my mom and a bowl of pasta, the way we were raised — I want to bring that same emotional sensation to Dallas-Fort Worth."