Oh my goodness… I just found a great Daily News article about Judd Grisanti’s Trattoria at Poplar and Humes, and about the feuding going on within the Grisanti family. If you remember what Spindini was like when Judd ran it – he opened it in 2007 and ran it until forced out by investors in early 2009 – this article is a must-read.
A few highlights:
- Judd’s Trattoria has a major investor who wants it to be run differently. The investor is bringing Judd’s dad Ronnie back to the restaurant, “to bring the restaurant up to the finest of Tuscan cuisine in the old style.” Judd will work under his dad’s direction.
- “Judd is not a manager, and he won’t recognize it,” said Ronnie.
- In early 2011, the restaurant will revert to Ronnie’s name.
- “If Judd doesn’t want to be in the kitchen, I will get someone else to do it,” said Ronnie.
- The article also talks about Ronnie’s feud with uncle Big John back in the ’80s, and about the differences between Ronnie’s sons Judd and Alex. Alex cooks at Elfo’s down the street on Poplar. I’ve never met Alex but I’m Facebook friends with him and he seems like a super nice guy.
- Ronnie finishes the interview saying, “I hope this will help the restaurant, but, whatever…”
Simply a great article. Read it here.