Since those long-ago days of red-checkered
tablecloths and fiasco Chianti, Joseph has been a part of an
Italian wine and food "revolution," much of it ignited
by his mother, Lidia Matticchio Bastianich of Felidia, and has
since been fueled by Joseph in an ever-expanding array of projects:
restaurants, a retail shop, a winery in Italy, books and much
more.
Joseph partnered with Lidia to open his first restaurant,
Becco, a theater-district trattoria. Becco created a huge
buzz with its "prix fixe" wine list.
In 1998, Joseph teamed up with Chef Mario Batali to open
Babbo. The restaurant attracted a flood of critical praise,
including an enthusiastic three stars from the New York Times,
and was honored as "the Best New Restaurant in America"
by the prestigious James Beard Foundation.
Continuing their partnership, Joseph and Mario opened the
casual, Roman-themed Lupa, the ground-breaking Esca, where
Bastianich, Batali and Chef David Pasternack have introduced
America to "crudo"—the raw seafood that is
a staple in fishing villages along the southern coast if Italy—and
Otto Enoteca Pizzeria.
Soon Joseph and Mario decided to explore other cuisines.
They started with Spain and opened Casa Mono and Bar Jamón
a Spanish tappas restaurant and wine bar and most recently
France with Bistro du Vent.
Meanwhile, Joseph and Lidia have created a multi-unit Italian
restaurant concept called Lidia's with locations in Kansas
City and Pittsburgh.
Never content to stand still, Joe again partnered with Batali
and with Sergio Esposito to create Italian Wine Merchants:
an upscale retail shop devoted to Italian wines. On location
at Italian Wine Merchants, the Studio del Gusto functions
as a display kitchen and salumeria where Bastianich and his
partners hold cooking demonstrations and wine tastings.
Joseph ventured into his ancestral Friuli-Venezia Giulia
to create the acclaimed wine estate, Azienda Agricola Bastianich
and into Maremma, Tuscany where he established the wine estate
La Mozza s.r.l. He is also bottling a delicate olive oil from
groves in Colli Orientali and Trieste.
Joseph has teamed with Babbo Beverage Director and journalist
David Lynch to write Vino Italiano, a comprehensive
book on Italian Wines. In November 2004, they published the
Vino Italiano Buying Guide, a companion to their
award winning book.
Joseph appears regularly as a wine authority on both Lidia's
and Mario's television shows.
