Experiences key for family-owned restaurant

For Trento Executive Chef Alex Kahn, working with his family is both rewarding and stressful.

"Like any job, it is stressful," said Kahn, a 2002 graduate of West Lake High School. "But it isn't like a normal job. You don't just show up for a paycheck. [The restaurant] is your heart and soul."

Kahn, along with his parents, Nina and Frank Seely, has been putting his heart and soul into Trento for two years. The Italian restaurant, located at 3600 N. Capital of Texas Hwy., Bldg. D, was formerly a Gumbo's and a Chili's before undergoing a monthlong remodel by Frank and his family to create the Italian restaurant.

Kahn, a graduate of the Culinary Institute of America in New York, designed the kitchen himself, and Frank used his experience in restaurant location selection and construction to open Trento as he did with Austin restaurants such as Z Tejas and Hopdoddy Burger Bar. The restaurant is the first venture for the family, but not the last. They plan to open a second Trento location in the spring, but are not ready to announce the location, Frank said.

In addition to opening a second location, Trento is now under new management. Rui Coelho, who has more than 30 years' experience in the restaurant business, took over this summer.

Frank said he hired Coelho to bring more attention to the details of customer service, something Coelho said he prides himself on.

"It is about trying to make contact with the customers," Coelho said. "We want to make their evening feel special. When you go out, you want to feel special."

Kahn said part of what makes an evening special is the dishes prepared in the restaurant's scratch kitchen. He said the restaurant uses farm-to-table ingredients, and nearly everything is made in-house.

"We want our customers to be discovering Italy at their table," Coelho said.

Wine dinners

Trento offers wine dinners monthly. The special dinner consists of a four-course meal prepared by the chefs, and each dish is paired with a wine ($85–$100 per person).

Dining 2 Give

Nina Seely, co-owner of Trento, started Dining 2 Give to allow the restaurant to partner with nonprofits to raise both money and awareness, she said.

Every Monday the restaurant partners with a nonprofit and gives the nonprofit a percentage of that night's sales. The program works on a sliding scale based on the number of people the nonprofit attracts to the restaurant. Less than 100 people results in a 15 percent share, between 100 and 200 is a 20 percent share and more than 200 people gives the nonprofit a quarter of the profit for that night.

"This way we become more of a sponsor rather than giving something away and not forming a connection with the group," Nina Seely said.

Any nonprofit group is eligible to sign up, she said. Interested parties can find more information online at www.trento360.com.

Trento, 3600 N. Capital of Texas Hwy., Bldg. D, Austin, 512-328-7555, www.trento360.com

• Lunch: Mon.–Fri. 11 a.m.–3 p.m.
• Dinner: Sun.–Thu. 5–9 p.m., Fri.–Sat. 5–10 p.m.
• Brunch: Sun. 10:30 a.m.–3 p.m.