Sicilian Pasta Kitchen South

The business philosophy behind Sicilian Pasta Kitchen South is simple but effective: make food from scratch and serve it in a family-friendly environment. The restaurant first opened in 1995 with two locations. The original owner sold both separately in 1997 to the staff. Don Orchuk and Stephen Maguire bought the south side restaurant with two partners, who have since been replaced by Erin Hardie and Stephen’s brother Jamie. The foursome have found a groove in running the business with a common vision.

“Not having to answer to a big corporate parent is fantastic,” Stephen says. “If something changes, it’s easy to change direction. A decision made today can be implemented tomorrow. It’s always nice that it doesn’t have to go through 10 layers of bureaucracy.” Stephen takes pride in his staff members, many of whom have been with him since the beginning. “We all worked for other businesses and didn’t like the way they were run,” he says. “The staff was disposable in those kinds of places. We go out of our way to foster an attitude that the staff here are valued.” This philosophy shines through in the customer service delivered each day in Sicilian Pasta Kitchen South.