Canino's Italian Restaurant
Nestled in near the intersection of Laurel and College Avenue, mixed in an assortment of buildings dubbed “Down-Downtown”, stands Canino’s Italian Restaurant. This January will mark the 38th year Canino’s has been in Fort Collins, and restaurant owner Clyde Canino says building a sense of community and having great food has help bring them this far.
Mr. Canino, manager and owner of Canino's Italian restaurant, used to work at his father's restaurant back in his 'younger' days. "My father had a restaurant here in town called Tico's. My father always thought that I would take over that restaurant," Clyde Canino said. But, his interests were more towards italian food, as his father previously had an italian restaurant in Denver. After having an 'identity crisis', Clyde describes, "Me and my father went on a retreat and later started looking for places in Fort Collins to start an italian restaurant there."
The building they ended up selecting has almost as much history surrounding food as Canino's family does. The home was built in 1903 by a man named Jack Corbin. After being exchanged by several families, it was turned into a restaurant in 1973 by the Redding family, who lived on the higher level of the large building. Clyde Canino’s family bought it in 1976 and has been operating in the estate ever since.
Mr. Canino, manager and owner of Canino's Italian restaurant, used to work at his father's restaurant back in his 'younger' days. "My father had a restaurant here in town called Tico's. My father always thought that I would take over that restaurant," Clyde Canino said. But, his interests were more towards italian food, as his father previously had an italian restaurant in Denver. After having an 'identity crisis', Clyde describes, "Me and my father went on a retreat and later started looking for places in Fort Collins to start an italian restaurant there."
The building they ended up selecting has almost as much history surrounding food as Canino's family does. The home was built in 1903 by a man named Jack Corbin. After being exchanged by several families, it was turned into a restaurant in 1973 by the Redding family, who lived on the higher level of the large building. Clyde Canino’s family bought it in 1976 and has been operating in the estate ever since.
With such an extensive history within Fort Collins, Clyde gives credit for the restaurant’s success to the sheer variety of people who visit, young and old. He expressed that with the ‘homey’ atmosphere of having your restaurant in an actual house, he wants people to be comfortable no matter who they are, or where they come from.
Soundbite: Clyde Canino on success through his diverse customers, and the atmosphere he wants Canino’s to have. |
The Food of Canino's
With traditional flair and a great amount of variety, Canino’s delivers the expectations the average person would have for an Italian restaurant. There are many spaghetti oriented meals including Stuffed Jumbo Shells, Spinach Lasagna and Baked Penne. All pasta recipes can be substituted with gluten free pasta. In addition they have an assortment of veal recipes, as well as extensive seafood platter choices for someone who is more of a meat eater. Canino’s serves lunch and dinner, and also offers special catering services.
So, what gives Canino's restaurant the right to dub itself 'traditional'? “These are all our own recipes.” Clyde Canino said, “[The recipes] have all been in our family a really long time.” His heritage is based from Calabria, Italy, which is the southern tip of the ‘boot’. Clyde told us the region is associated with a lot of the ‘Italian’ foods we are familiar with, such as pasta and red sauces.
The most unique thing about Canino’s Italian Restaurant is their ‘Retro Night’ special. For the budget wise consumer, Canino’s bargains this Tuesday special menu where 5 entrees are offered at 1980’s prices. A large spaghetti dinner is palatable for the taste buds as well as the wallet when priced at $3.50. Other specially priced meals include Manicotti, Ravioli, and a sampler plate of spaghetti, ravioli and lasagna. This sampler is also available in vegetarian. |
Though the restaurant is met with positive reception to its menu, Clyde Canino claims he has had to make some changes to his traditional Southern Italy cuisine to appeal to a wider audience. “We do offer, now, things like a steak or a salmon dish….[this is] to appeal to as many possible people as we can.”
The Bite Box: Meal ReviewI took advantage of the Retro Night special and ordered spaghetti with red sauce, as well as a loaf of garlic bread. I requested that the red sauce be on the side so I could put on as much, or as little, as I like, which they delivered upon. I thought that was a nice touch, as other restaurants where I’ve requested sauce in a separate bowl, they forget. The spaghetti was filling and tasted nicely homemade, and the sauce was the perfect texture, not too spicy nor too tomato-y. Honestly I thought the garlic bread was the best part of the meal though! It was buttery, flaky and had a satisfying crunchy crust mixed within the soft bread middle. The garlic was not overwhelming, and the bread melted in your mouth with amazing flavor. Needless to say, I took home as much as I could!
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Location of Canino's within the Fort Collins Downtown area.
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With such a good reputation and landmark status of their building, Clyde Canino and his team hope to be in Fort Collins for many more years to come. In short, if you want to have good Italian food with a comfortable, family atmosphere, head over to Canino's Italian restaurant. And make sure to eat a lot of garlic bread!
If you would like to know more about Canino's Italian Restaurant, please visit their website by following this link or referring to the embedded map to the left. |
Article written and compiled by Blair Kelly, 2013. Special thanks to Clyde Canino, Markham Rougé and Canino's team.