Popular chef’s new SLO restaurant blends flavors of Italy and Peru. Here’s a look

A new restaurant that features a fusion menu blending Peruvian and Italian cuisines has opened in San Luis Obispo, and its chef is a familiar face.

Nicola Allegretta of Mama’s Meatball and Mistura recently opened a third restaurant in SLO named after himself.

The restaurant, located in the Laguna Village Shopping Center, prides itself on what is called Bachiche cuisine, drawing favorite menu items and flavors from Allegretta’s two existing restaurants.

It opened on Oct. 21.

“I’m very happy for ourselves and for the community to be there, because we can deliver something different,” Allegretta told The Tribune. “There’s plenty of parking, and we have an amazing crew. I think it’s going to be fantastic.”

The Bachiche cuisine is not a new concept, as it originated in Peru with Italian immigrants, Allegretta said, but he believes it’s the first restaurant of its kind in the United States.

The restaurant’s Bachiche influences include Menestron, a minestrone soup with tender beef and pasta, Tallarin, a homemade tagliatelle pasta with signature Bachiche pesto, and Ceviche Callao, a classic Peruvian ceviche.

The pasta is made by hand, by Allegretta’s mother, Maria Allegretta.

Beyond its Bachiche dishes, Nicola serves the “best of both worlds” of favorites from Mama’s Meatball and Mistura, including lasagna, wood-fired pizzas and fresh catches of the day.

“It’s the best of the best, because there’s both, but also has some very unique dishes that don’t exist,” Allegretta said.

For Nicola’s dessert menu, tiramisu, banana creme brulée, Italian cheesecake, gelato and sorbetto are top contenders for a sweet treat after lunch or dinner. Display cases showcasing the pastry desserts and iced treats are near the front of the restaurant.

Choosing to name the restaurant after himself was no easy task, Allegretta said. With his name now out on a building, he can’t hide behind his previous restaurants’ names.

“It’s a lot of responsibility, you know, because it’s my name. It’s me,” he said. “After more than 35 years working in the industry between restaurants, hotels and resorts, to put my name out there, I have to really deliver it to people.”

Allegretta describes Nicola’s ambiance as elegant and said the restaurant can transport you to New York or Miami with a “big city feeling.”

“It’s very unique,” he said. “Many people, they come in there, they like to stay a little longer, because it feels cozy like a home. They tell you, I don’t feel like I’m in San Luis Obispo.”

For more information

Nicola at 11560 Los Osos Road, Suite 190, is open Tuesday to Thursday and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. and Friday and Saturday from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. For more information about the new restaurant, visit its website at nicolaslo.com.

This story was originally published November 19, 2025 at 5:00 AM.