When Luigi Folgore unlocked the doors to Luigi’s Italian Restaurant in Eustis in 2020, he was reviving a legacy that began decades earlier in his family’s kitchen in Italy. From there, recipes traveled to Florida and were shared with the community. 

“I moved here from Naples when I was 4 years old and my extended family had a restaurant,” Luigi says. “It’s where my cousins and I grew up cooking.”

Luigi learned the nuance of creating dough, the complex art of making sauce and the rhythm of hospitality in the restaurant and his family kitchen. Today, he takes pride in keeping family recipes alive and sharing techniques learned from his parents Pasquale and Marie with a community hungry for comfort and authenticity.

“We’re Italian, so food is our get-together, our foundation and our principle of life,” he says. “Without food, we don’t seem to exist.”

Luigi does more than exist in the restaurant. “I share my heart, my life, my soul and my passion,” he says. “Everybody has their thing and this is mine … We do a lot of stuff old school. We make our own meatballs, prep our own eggplant, filet our meats scaloppini and we even create and bake our own sub rolls.” 

Loyal customers certainly appreciate the homemade dishes. Luigi’s was still buzzing when Nicole and I visited just after 2pm on a Thursday. Couples filled booths, large groups shared pizzas and a business meeting took place at one of the center tables. I watched servers Vanessa and Vinnie hardly slow down—which is the best problem to have in this business. 

The food is what brought us in. 

The aroma of simmering sauce filled the air and the allure of pizza filled our imagination. 

While Nicole snapped photos, I snuck a warm, vampire-proof, hand-tossed garlic knot brushed with olive oil and topped with a healthy amount of minced garlic. Luigi understands that if you don’t put minced garlic on your garlic knots, they are just knots and not worth the trouble.

The Caprese salad was unusual due to beefsteak tomatoes sliced so thinly that they practically melted into the mozzarella. It was a nice touch because the tomatoes don’t overpower the delicate cheese. A drizzle of balsamic glaze on a bed of iceberg lettuce felt playful and fresh.

The chicken piccata had a hint of lemon and the capers packed a briny punch that balanced beautifully with the tender chicken and linguine underneath.

By contrast, the pizza sauce leaned sweet and I could tell it was from a traditional recipe. I’ve tasted pizza in Italy and this was another reminder that every element at Luigi’s is crafted with intention. The crowd-favorite deluxe pie was piled high with meats and veggies and was delicious. 

The cannoli came with a crisp cinnamon dusted shell and creamy chocolate chip filling. 

Nicole and I split everything down the middle, which is rare and a testament to how approachable the food is.

“People call for the tortellini soup when they have the cold and flu. It’s kind of a home remedy that comes from the generations,” says Manager Brenda Dietrick, who has been with the restaurant more than 20 years and has no intention of leaving any time soon. 

“It’s like a family. We love each other and sometimes drive one another crazy.”

Brenda recently hired Ashley, a local girl she’s known since she was little. And in the kitchen, Mamma Maria still makes the soups herself. 

Luigi rarely takes a day off. He stirs the sauce, tosses the dough and stuffs cannoli alongside his dedicated staff. Employees say he moves easily between kitchen and dining room, chatting with regulars and checking on tables. His accessibility seems to be part of what keeps people coming back. 

The community, he explains, is an extension of his family. “The lodge, the vets, the schools, they’re all part of it. We get a lot of people who come in just for a slice of pizza.”

Most of his staff came with him from other places, and they help each other with everything, even finding babysitters when someone has kids and can’t work. 

“Family and togetherness, that’s what it’s about,” he adds.

As for the future, Luigi sees room for enhancing the menu, but for now he’s content. “We might add a few dishes, but we are just happy to be here and doing our best to make it the most authentic Italian food in town.” 

Photos: Nicole Hamel