Hamptons: Italian Roots Brought to Sumter
From Italy to England to the United States, Chef Raffaele Dall'Erta has spent years honing the craft of Italian cuisine that he incorporates with American favorites.
Sapori: Taste of Italy
In Italy, food is more than a meal; it’s an experience. Produce is fresh, local and served at its prime. Wines are cultivated to complement certain ingredients and come alive when paired with specific flavors. Meals are deliberate, leisurely gatherings that involve unhurried courses coupled with relaxed conversation, often about food.
This is the experience that Sapori endeavors to provide its guests. Karen van Heerden opened the Lexington, South Carolina, restaurant in 2016 with her daughter, Nemi Fiaschi, and son-in-law, Andrea Fossi, to bring true Italian food and hospitality to her diners with the help and expertise of Executive Chef Howard Stephens.
“Sapori for me is more than just a normal restaurant. It’s giving people an experience to taste different things,” van Heerden says, explaining that the word “sapori” means “taste” in Italian, and is related to the expression “assaporare,” to enjoy the moment.
“The restaurant looks like the inside of somebody’s house,” van Heerden says, describing the walls decorated with pictures of family and artwork collected from her travels. “Everything in the restaurant tells a story. When you come there, you already feel at home.”
Van Heerden was born in Cape Town, South Africa, and lived in Florence, Italy, for 23 years before moving to the United States. Wanting to subvert pre-established American ideas of Italian food, she decided to open a restaurant built upon local or Italian-sourced, in-season ingredients and authentic Italian flavors and techniques. Everything is made from scratch and mindfully prepared to elevate the overall dining experience.
To make your visit the most memorable, van Heerden recommends trying multiple courses, sipping from a bottle of Italian wine and fully relaxing to be present in the moment.
“Open your mind and let us guide you, because there’s different flavors to be experienced.”
Discover more about Sapori's Italian roots at saporilexington.com or spend an evening there for dinner Tuesday - Saturday. Sapori is located at 407 N Lake Drive in Lexington, South Carolina.
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