“You can come in and spend 20 bucks on pizza and beer, or you can come in for a date night and spend a couple hundred bucks on a nice bottle of wine and a nice meal,” said Shawney Severns, executive chef of North Italia The Woodlands. “It’s inviting to whatever guests are looking forward to.”
The restaurant, which is located in the Town Center area, opened Oct. 5. Severns said it hosted one of the busiest family and friends events out of the restaurant’s over 30 locations.
“We’ve gotten a lot of positive feedback,” Severns said. “We have such great staff back there that are super receptive, so anything our guests have brought to us, we’ve been able to really teach our staff and hone our skills to make everybody happy.”
Severns has been cooking since she was young and enjoys the family aspect of being in the kitchen.
“It was always a family thing,” she said. “We had dinner as a family, so I always enjoyed it.”
Severns joined North Italia at its Nashville location in 2018 and worked at the locations in San Antonio before coming to open The Woodlands’ location.
“Previously, I worked for some high-end seafood restaurants and smaller, fine-dining locations, but North just always kind of felt like home,” she said.
Each restaurant is unique and features murals that reflect the community with landmarks such as The Woodlands Waterway bridge, she said.
“You see [the restaurant] from The Waterway—a big dark sided building with bright red letters. You come into the building, and everything is styled so nicely. We have someone who comes in and paints our murals by hand,” she said. “It’s very specific to where they’re at and what they bring to the table.”
Menu items include handmade pizzas and pastas and Severns’ favorite dish—the shrimp scampi.
“[It’s] my go-to that I order every time I come. It can be like a dip with the bread and the garlic butter, and the shrimp is cooked really nicely,” she said.Severns said the team is constantly trying to expand its menu to stay current with trends.
“There’s so much going on in the food industry. ... We’re extremely fortunate that we’re a growing company in such a challenging time,” she said. “Anything I personally can do to contribute to our growth and stay current and make people want to come in and enjoy spending money here and being an essential part of this community is something to be proud of.”
General Manager Brynn Ward runs the location alongside Severns.
“Having a female team is really awesome,” Severns said. “The dynamic that we’re running the front and the back of the restaurant and we’re really just providing that family between the staff in the restaurant as well—that’s important to us.”
North Italia
The Woodlands1201 Lake Woodlands Drive, The Woodlands
281-292-6935
www.northitalia.com
Hours: Mon.-Thu. 11 a.m.-10 p.m., Fri. 11 a.m.-11 p.m., Sat. 10 a.m.-11 p.m., Sun. 10 a.m.-10 p.m.
