Husband-and-wife team John and Shawn Bartlik made it their mission to bring classic Italian cuisine to the Cedar Park area, one mouth at a time, with the opening of Rosati’s in 2020.

Some context

John’s family migrated to New York from Italy, where his parents opened several Italian restaurants. After meeting his now-wife, Shawn, and running their own restaurants, they chose Cedar Park to raise their twins and open a restaurant.

“We had friends out here and when we visited, we loved the area and how family-oriented it is,” Shawn said. “We felt we could build a future here.”

Shawn said their vision for the restaurant was to create a place where people could hang out and get to know others in their community—something Shawn said they believe is important.


Despite the obstacles they faced opening during the pandemic, they always made sure to help their community, including disabled veterans, churches and first responders, Shawn said.

“During the last two ice storms, we also offered our restaurant to anyone in need of food or shelter,” she said.

Why we love it

Rosati’s in Cedar Park uses a combination of generational, house-made recipes along with imported pastas, cheese and sausage to create their more popular dishes such as lasagna and fettuccine alfredo; however, Shawn said their specialty lies in their three styles of Chicago pizzas: traditional tavern-style thin crust, deep-dish and double-dough.


Shawn said to improve their guests’ dining experience, she and her husband recently enclosed the dog-friendly patio area to add heating and air conditioning, where they host live music, large parties and events.

“We want our customers to feel like they are part of our family,” Shawn said. “We hope if you haven’t given us a try yet, you will.”