The (successful) challenge of a business which has decided not to limit itself to the summer season alone

With Carlo Cangiano of the restaurant “La Tablita”, we discover what it means to run a restaurant in Anacapri which stays open all winter long

Can you meet the challenge of running a business in a seaside resort by keeping it open all year round? There are those who say they can, and, by putting their skills and passion into play, demonstrate that this is a goal which is not only achievable, but which can bring great satisfaction.

We interviewed Carlo Cangiano, manager of “La Tablita” restaurant, who told us how, thanks to a new vision, he transformed a pub into a place that deals with gastronomy at 360°, aiming in particular at the target of the local population in order to stay in business even in winter.

Let’s talk about La Tablita; when did the idea come to start this adventure?

“I took over this place in 2011, so it’s been in business for 10 years now; before it was a pub, but it had already been closed for a few years. I immediately believed in this place, and above all I recognized its great potential: the first thing I did when I took over was to remove video poker and pool tables, because I had a different vision from what it had been up to that moment. I started together with a partner, but after three years I continued on my own; I think anyone else would have given up, but I continued to believe in it. The restart also involved a renovation of the premises: I tried to make it as welcoming and airtight as possible, so that I could work 12 months a year, except for the two weeks of vacation that I allow myself. This renovation project, which came six years after I started managing the restaurant, was also supported by the owner of the building.

What does the restaurant look like now?

“It is a single room, a large environment with a corner bar deliberately positioned adjacent to the road, so that in summer it is also visible from outside. Right from the start I tried to do catering as well, adding to the menu of sandwiches a discreet offer of first and second courses. I had surrounded myself with a very good team in the kitchen, so it seemed normal to me to want to do something more. At the beginning it was not easy to remove the label of sandwich shop, but over time the trend has changed, and now we can say that we are 98% restaurant and 2% sandwich shop. However, this aspect remains, partly because I don’t want to abandon “the origins”, and partly because, thinking of various target customers, such as families, I believe it is right to offer an offer as varied as possible.

What are the balances of this summer’s activities?

“This summer has gone beyond expectations, after a year and a half full of uncertainty and precariousness. Now we’re starting to work well, with a different perception; however, in general, I’m not very interested in numbers; what counts for me is working as well as possible.”

I know there have been changes in the kitchen….

“The new chef Salvatore de Martino was the new entry in our kitchen, and he now works alongside chef Alfonso Mastellone. In the menu of the day we offer 5/6 appetizers, 3/4 first courses, the catch of the day, second courses of fish in a crust with potatoes or zucchini… there is a lot of work behind and the extra gear has definitely been the greater processing of the product, in a way that customers really like.”