Facci Turf Valley Brings Italian Cuisine to Northwestern Ellicott City

Facci Turf Valley is the first of four restaurants to open at the new shopping center anchored by Harris Teeter in the northwest corner of Ellicott City.

It's the second restaurant of the same name opened by owner Gino Palma, 37, a Columbia resident, who came to America from Naples, Italy in 1996. The first Facci opened in Fulton in 2010.

Palma's story is more reminiscent of a turn of the 19th Century immigrant than that of the modern times.

He said he came to the country with only $100, but actually owed money because he had to repay relatives in Virginia who paid for his ticket. His first job was working as a dishwasher at a restaurant in Johnstown, PA. He said he worked 17 hours a day and hated it, eventually leaving the small town for Fairfax, VA.

By 1998, he left Virginia to open a pizza place, Squisito, on Kent Island with a friend. In the 2000s, Palma would open other Italian take-out places in Clarksville (Pasta Blitz), Glenwood (Pasta Blitz) and Laurel (Pasta Nostra).

In 2010, he changed direction from takeout and decided to focus on a sit-down Italian restaurant in Laurel, which would become the first Facci. The restaurant is known for its wood-fired pizzas and handmade pastas.

Now Palma has taken that concept and created another Facci in Turf Valley. This one features large retractable windows, an outdoor bar, two patios, an open concept dining room that seats 170 and a "show" bar where patrons can watch as pasta is rolled or pizza is cooked.

Inside the restaurant, Palma excitedly showed off features like the faucet lights that change color based on water temperature inside the bathrooms and the iron fireplace in the restaurant's waiting area.

"I design everything," said Palma. "It's a little more of a touch of the contemporary design that's going on in Italy. I wanted to do something sexy."

Click through the pictures above to see more of the restaurant.

The mosaic red wood-burning pizza oven was purchased from Naples, said Palma, and can cook a pizza in about 60 seconds.

The executive chef Antonio Martelengo and pasta chef Germana Giordanengo both hail from Torino, in Northern Italy.

The menu features pizza ($10 - $12); pastas such as tagliolini di funghi ($20), seafood ravioli ($25); and Italian staples such as veal parmesan ($19) and shrimp scampi ($17).

The back wall is filled with some of the restaurant's 425 types of wine. The selection focuses on Italian wine, said Palma.

"We were very busy," said Palma about the opening last week.

Later this week, Palma will celebrate his birthday with his family.

"It was really hard, but I'm very proud," said Palma, reflecting on his journey from Naples with nothing to becoming a successful restaurateur. He spoke briefly about his mother, who still lives in Naples, "[She] hears about me all the time."

Restaurant Information:

Facci Turf Valley
11095 Resort Road, Ellicott City
410-750-0001
faccirestaurant.com