In May 2015, Antonio Giner brought his cooking skill set to Round Rock and created Palermo Pasta House, a family-owned restaurant in the heart of downtown.

The backstory

The restaurant first opened across from its current location on Main Street before relocating in 2021.

Giner and his family were interested in moving to Central Texas from El Paso, where he owned a wood-fired pizza restaurant for 10 years. The Giners looked into a handful of Austin’s neighboring towns before connecting with Round Rock’s family-oriented charm.
The restaurant relocated from its address across the street in 2021 and has since offered an expanded dining space and additional menu items. (Dacia Garcia/Community Impact)
The restaurant relocated from its address across the street in 2021 and has since offered an expanded dining space and additional menu items. (Dacia Garcia/Community Impact)
The chef was raised in Buenos Aires, Argentina, making fresh pasta with his father. After feeling nostalgic for the pasta he grew up eating—from gnocchi to ravioli and cappelletti—Giner opened the restaurant.

“We're known for grilling in Argentina, but when we're not grilling, we're eating pasta because half the people are of Italian descent,” Giner said. “It's very ingrained in our culture. We don't even call it Italian food. To us, it's just food; like doesn't everyone's grandma make ravioli on Sunday?”
Community members can enjoy appetizers, salads, pizzas, calzones and a range of pasta dishes. (Dacia Garcia/Community Impact)
Community members can enjoy appetizers, salads, pizzas, calzones and a range of pasta dishes. (Dacia Garcia/Community Impact)
Dig deeper


Giner attended Loyola Marymount University in California, where he studied business administration after first moving to the U.S. He slowly shifted into food preparation and hospitality over the years before opening his first project cooking Argentine food.

Through his time opening different restaurants, one thing that's stayed the same is his devotion to acquiring the exact skill set needed for his new endeavor.

“One thing I’ve always done is for every project, I’ve always taken some technical training,” Giner said. “Before I opened [Palermo Pasta House], I took a sabbatical and I went back to Argentina and studied professional cooking for a year. Professional baker, professional chef, professional pastry chef—I did the whole course.”
In addition to pasta, customers can enjoy calzones and pizzas available with a range of toppings from gorgonzola cheese and prosciutto to hot peppers and meatballs. (Courtesy Palermo Pasta House)
In addition to pasta, customers can enjoy calzones and pizzas available with a range of toppings from Gorgonzola cheese and prosciutto to hot peppers and meatballs. (Courtesy Palermo Pasta House)
On the menu

Diners can enjoy appetizers, salads, pizzas, calzones and a variety of pasta dishes. The restaurant offers 28 pasta sauces and six pasta shapes, which can each be paired however the customer desires.


“We make all the sauces, we make all the pastas, we make all the pizza dough, and we grate all the cheeses. So we have a lot to do just to open up on time every day,” Giner said.

Customers have requested to purchase the restaurant’s pasta noodles to make their own dishes at home, which Giner said the team is working toward offering in the near future. He said the business is planning to also offer some of the sauces for purchase.
The restaurant's menu offers 28 pasta sauces and six pasta shapes which customers can combine to create their own entrees. (Courtesy Palermo Pasta House)
The restaurant's menu offers 28 pasta sauces and six pasta shapes, which customers can combine to create their own entrees. (Courtesy Palermo Pasta House)
Quote of note

“We're grateful to the community for supporting us, and we're very happy to do what we're doing,” Giner said. “We're very happy that we have a very diverse customer base, and we’re happy that everyone from everywhere likes pasta."