The owners of Gino’s Italian Restaurant said they treasure family traditions and values, and they want to bring those values to local neighborhoods through their restaurants.

Gino Minardi, the restaurant’s namesake, and his family have successfully run Gino’s in Round Rock for more than 20 years, said Teresa Cottingham, Minardi’s daughter. Cottingham opened Gino’s in Cedar Park last year, offering the same traditional Italian food, such as pasta, pizza, seafood, meat dishes and Italian desserts, to a new community.

Minardi is a native Sicilian who moved to New York City in 1957 at the age of 25. There, he met his wife, Angela, the daughter of Brooklyn bakery owners. Minardi and his wife opened their first bakery and pizzeria in New Jersey. In the 1970s, the couple moved their bakery and pizzeria to Galveston.

“My dad’s best friend moved to Galveston with his brother and opened two pizzerias,” Cottingham said. “He asked my dad to come down because there were no Italian bakeries. The weather was beautiful and warm. It reminded them of their hometown, Gela, which is on the coast of Sicily.”

Later, the Minardis followed their children to the Round Rock area, where they opened Gino’s in 1993. The restaurant expanded twice, and Cottingham said guests kept asking when there would be a second Gino’s location.

“When my boys were grown, my son, Michael, said, ‘Let’s keep our family tradition growing,’” Cottingham said. “So we opened Gino’s in Cedar Park.”

Cottingham now runs the Cedar Park location.

“It is a family tradition, and we use family recipes. Even our employees are like family. ... We have wonderful employees; many of them have been with us for 10-15 years,” Cottingham said.

Keep the kitchen clean at Christmas

Gino’s offers family-size portions on its catering menu. Order one to two days in advance, and eat Gino’s at home on Christmas.

Gino’s Italian Restaurant
1525 Cypress Creek Road, Cedar Park
512-996-8990
www.ginoscedarpark.com
www.facebook.com/ginoscedarpark
Hours: Mon.-Fri. 11 a.m.-2:30 p.m., 5-9:30 p.m.; Sat. noon-9:30 p.m.; Sun. noon-8 p.m.