Finelli's History

TRULY A FAMILY ENDEAVOR

Frank and Jeanne Finelli, proprietors of Finelli's Italian Villa, were familiar with the restaurant standing at 1808 Fourth Avenue in Altoona Pennsylvania. In fact, it was a local landmark known as the Dutch Kitchen. In 1983 a blazing inferno destroyed the second and third floors and the building was marked for demolition.

Frank shocked his family and his neighbors when he stopped the bulldozers and claimed the burned out shell as the future home of Finelli's Italian Villa.

The entire Finelli Family embraced Frank's vision to build a quality Italian restaurant from the ashes of the Dutch Kitchen. Over the next 10 years the Finell family worked doggedly to rebuild the structure and to learn the fine points of the restaurant business. In 1993 Finelli's Italian Villa triumphantly opened it's doors. It remains a family backed undertaking with Frank acting as Host and Manager while Jeanne runs the dinning room. Anthony is the Head Chef and Amigh works behind the bar and in the dinning room.

"The restaurant is a great portrayal of not only our ideals but also those of our children. We are so happy and fulfilled by having our family working closely with us and we can't imagine being anywhere else," says Jeanne.