{"id":3597,"date":"2026-08-04T16:43:11","date_gmt":"2026-08-04T16:43:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/corporate-movers-usa.com\/?p=3597"},"modified":"2026-08-04T16:43:11","modified_gmt":"2026-08-04T16:43:11","slug":"a-longtime-bala-cynwyd-bistro-is-closing-and-center-city-italian-restaurant-veterans-are-moving-in","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/corporate-movers-usa.com\/?p=3597","title":{"rendered":"A longtime Bala Cynwyd bistro is closing, and Center City Italian restaurant veterans are moving in"},"content":{"rendered":"<div>\n<div>\n<div><audio><\/audio><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>After more than three decades, the Wakim family is handing off Bala Cynwyd\u2019s Aldar Bistro to veterans of Center City\u2019s Gran Caff\u00e8 L\u2019Aquila, who plan to transform the longtime Lebanese restaurant into a soft-lit, white-tablecloth Southern Italian destination called Bruzi.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/corporate-movers-usa.com\/?p=3595\">Lower Merion shut down a school board meeting amid shouts from parents angry about tech use<\/a><\/p>\n<div><\/div>\n<p>Two Philly-based couples from Cosenza in Calabria \u2014 Luciano and Tania Spensierato and Marco Mondello and Anna Bellizzi \u2014 are buying the restaurant at 285 Montgomery Ave. from Joseph Wakim and family. <\/p>\n<div><\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<p>The sale, contingent on approval of the liquor license transfer, will end the Wakims\u2019 34-year run at Aldar, which will be open during the transfer process. The restaurant succeeded the family\u2019s Italian restaurant, Allegresse, which opened in 1980.<\/p>\n<div><\/div>\n<p>The Wakims \u2014 brothers Joseph, Michel, and George, and sister Fadia \u2014 also own Murray\u2019s Deli next door, as well as Evviva, a restaurant, catering venue, and private-events space in Narberth.<\/p>\n<div><\/div>\n<p>\u201cWe all grow older, and it\u2019s time to step aside,\u201d Joseph Wakim said. \u201cOver the past five years, we probably had 10 suitors, and I said, \u2018No, thank you.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n<div><\/div>\n<p>He said he ultimately chose the two couples because they were \u201cthe right families for us to pass the torch to.\u201d<\/p>\n<div><\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<p>Tania Spensierato said Aldar \u201cchecked all the boxes we were looking for. We wanted to be on the Main Line. We wanted tall ceilings, an existing liquor license, and a space that was roomy but not enormous. We weren\u2019t looking for a 200- or 300-seat restaurant. We wanted a spacious kitchen so the chef would have room to do what he does best.\u201d<\/p>\n<div><\/div>\n<p>\u201cWe also wanted to be part of a community,\u201d she said. \u201cBala Cynwyd and Lower Merion really fit that vision. The location on Montgomery Avenue was exactly what we were looking for.\u201d <\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/corporate-movers-usa.com\/?p=3593\">The annual Danny Rumph Classic tips off this Thursday. Here\u2019s everything you need to know.<\/a><\/p>\n<div><\/div>\n<p>Aldar will remain open until the liquor-license transfer is approved, a process that Wakim believes could be completed in September. The new owners then anticipate about two months of renovations before opening Bruzi in late October or November.<\/p>\n<div><\/div>\n<p>Luciano Spensierato has worked behind the bar at Gran Caff\u00e8 L\u2019Aquila since 2015, while Marco Mondello joined the Center City restaurant a year later as a bartender. Tania Spensierato works in retail, though her background is in restaurants. Bellizzi is a scientist at Temple University.<\/p>\n<div><\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<p>The name Bruzi refers to the ancient people of Calabria, where all the partners trace their roots. Tania Spensierato, a first-generation Italian American, said the restaurant is intended to reflect that heritage.<\/p>\n<div><\/div>\n<p>The menu will focus on house-made pastas and traditional Calabrian cooking. Planned dishes include sliced black boar prosciutto, Calabrian cheeses, fusilli with slow-cooked meat sauce, baked lamb with tomatoes, olives, and roasted peppers, and grilled tuna with arugula.<\/p>\n<div><\/div>\n<p>The beverage program also will be a centerpiece. Marco Mondello, an Italian-trained sommelier, plans to open with about 100 Italian wines and expand the list over time. Spensierato, who has worked as a bartender for 35 years, said cocktails will also play a prominent role.<\/p>\n<div><\/div>\n<p>Glynis Tart of Verden Interior Design will give the dining room a modern Mediterranean makeover with blue-and-gold accents inspired by the Calabrian flag, along with olive trees and other greenery, Tania Spensierato said. A small retail section will sell imported Italian products.<\/p>\n<div><\/div>\n<p>The partners have hired an Italian-born chef currently working in Florida but declined to identify him until a later date. \u201cOur first priority is simply to get started,\u201d Tania Spensierato said. \u201cOne goal at a time.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/corporate-movers-usa.com\/?p=3591\">Why Pa. repealed a 100-year-old midwife law | Morning Newsletter<\/a><\/p>\n<div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Two families with roots in Calabria are buying Aldar Bistro, the Bala Cynwyd landmark, to open a Southern Italian restaurant called Bruzi.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3596,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6,7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3597","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-food","category-restaurants"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.7 - 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