Fiorella is opening a branch in Las Vegas. Here’s how it’s all happening

The charm of Marc Vetri’s intimate Italian Market pasta bar, Fiorella, has always been its authenticity. From its old butcher shop vibes to its delicious fennel sausage ragu — made from the original Fiorella family recipe — to its nearly 125-year-old solid brass cash register, it all screams real South Philly.

This year, Matt Rodrigue, the chef de cuisine at Fiorella since it opened in 2020, and who Vetri has described as a “a great glimpse into the future of our industry,” was tasked with re-creating that South Philly authenticity in the sparkling food court of a luxurious Las Vegas Casino.

When Rodrigue helped open Fiorella at the Durango Casino & Resort on Dec. 5, it became Vetri’s latest Vegas venture. (In 2018, Vetri and longtime business partner Jeff Benjamin opened Vetri Cucina on the 56th floor of the Palms Casino Resort, a re-creation of the original Spruce Street destination.)

I spoke by phone with Rodrigue, 38, while he was still in Sin City — he’s back at the Philly restaurant now, after navigating the new location through opening — about what it was like to plant another Vetri flag in Vegas, the challenge of re-creating a slice of South Philly in the desert, and his path from a history teacher to one of the most lauded up-and-coming chefs in Philadelphia.

This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.

So how do you bring the flavor of the Italian Market to a food court 10 miles off the strip?

It’s in this really beautiful food hall called Eat Your Heart Out. We made it so the exterior and interior are almost exact replicas of Philadelphia Fiorella. The outside looks like your outside on Christian Street. It doesn’t have the age and the character of Philadelphia building, so it’s a little shinier. We actually have a version of the brass cash register. We’re lucky enough to have a very small, intimate space here that’s forcing us to cook like we’re cooking at home in Philly.

But it has to be much more than a replica, right?

When asking somebody like Chef Marc to transfer a version of Vetri or Fiorella to Vegas, the first question becomes: Can we do this the right way? And the right way is everything down to the fork and napkin, and the legs on the tables to the sugar caddies. If the sugar caddies can be in any restaurant then it’s not us. And it’s not just a carbon copy. We have the Vetri name so it becomes how are we going to deliver this thing that is awesome. If we are going to have success with Fiorella in Vegas it’s going to be because we brought the same magic.

Is there a growing awareness out West about what’s going food-wise in Philly? Or is it just the celebrity of Marc Vetri that is growing?

Chef Marc obviously carries a lot of weight, but I think the growing awareness is about the food itself, and not just the celebrity. When you’re in a new pond, you just start all over. You do what you know best. I have probably the ultimate and highest amount of respect for Chef Marc. So to do right by him is extremely important to me. It’s the kind of thing that might keep you up at night.

Can you make authentic Philly food in the desert?

Heck yeah! Look, I am a very intense guy who is all about teamwork and coaching and how we do this together. There have been times out here when people are looking at me and ask, “Where are you from?” and I’m like, “Philadelphia, and this is what we do.”

Ten years ago you were a history teacher at a Bucks County boarding school who never cooked a professional meal. Now you’ve opened the new Marc Vetri restaurant in Vegas.

I was standing in the dining room of Vetri Vegas with Chef Marc, looking out the many windows, out over the strip. I asked him what all this success is like for him? And he said, “Dude, it’s a daydream.” For me, it’s a much smaller version of the same thing. If you told me when I quit teaching and started cooking for not very much money that I’d be doing X, Y, and Z, I’d probably would have started crying. It is a daydream.