“The secret of change is to focus all of your energy not on fighting the old, but on building the new.” –Socrates
Chef Massimo of Amore Bistrot has prepared and sold this amazing quantity of Italian cuisine in the span of one year! Incredible!!
Twelve months ago, we wrote about the Italian family that uprooted themselves from their native city of Milano, Italy, right at the start of the pandemic, and moved to Benicia. From their location at the Inn at Benicia Bay, 2020 saw them through the challenges of construction, delays, permits, and finally their Amore Bistrot opened on December 17, 2020.

Massimo Biatta, his wife Sonia Giovanazzi, and their two teenage sons, Lorenzo and Giacomo, moved to Benicia with the intention of realizing a long-held dream of opening a genuine Italian bistrot, where people could have an authentic experience of an Italian market and bistrot.
Amore Bistrot features beautiful gift baskets each named for an Italian city, (like Florence, Venice and Naples), and each basket is filled with food specific to that city. Each product offered at the market and bistrot is produced by Italian companies, and chosen with meticulous attention to quality. Since being featured on a list of Yelp area’s “top 50 places to eat in the North Bay,” it seems all their hard work is paying off.
Amore Bistrot introduced the Italian aperitivo on Thursday and Saturday afternoons in April of 2020.
Aperitivo (Italian wine or aperol spritz, and Italian finger food) is a very popular tradition of the Italian culture, and has since been welcomed and enjoyed by many Amore Bistrot patrons.
For almost a year, Benicia and the surrounding bay area have enjoyed Amore Bistrot’s authentic Italian cuisine through their popular breakfast items, including bombeletti, cornetti and cornetti sandwiches with prosciutto and asiago cheese, their different kinds of polenta, their tiramisu, gnocchi (with a different sauce each day), and many other dishes. All pair well with their authentic Italian coffee, a unique blend crafted by chef Massimo. Their lasagne bolognese and lasagne pesto have become signature dishes; chef Massimo expects to prepare 5190 lasagne dishes by the end of the year.
Sonia and Massimo express their gratitude for the continued support of their Benicia patrons, without whom their success could not have been possible. While they continue to look for staff to help them grow, they are grateful to their sons, partners, and staff who have supported and worked with them through the trials of 2020. Bravo Chef Massimo and his family ! Grazie!