Restaurateurs Rocio Navarrete and Mariano Maldonado return to Naples with their latest venture, El Gaucho Trattoria, which taps into chef Maldonado’s Italian heritage. The “Italian-with-an-Argentinean-twist” concept offers a variation on the theme of the married couple’s El Gaucho Inca in Fort Myers and Estero, as well as El Gaucho Deli Café in Estero. (Neapolitans may recall a Naples branch of the restaurant, which closed a few years ago.)
The North Naples trattoria brings the chef’s Italian roots and repertoire front and center, adding a sprinkling of Argentinean (and Peruvian) flavors to the lineup. Navarrete says they felt ready to start something new and, given the popularity of Italian food, decided to highlight her spouse’s house-made pastas, pizzas, and other beloved Italian dishes. She adds that her husband’s grandparents emigrated from Italy to Argentina, bringing with them their love of cooking.
“They taught Mariano how to make pasta, pizza, so many dishes,” Navarrete says.
The extensive menu includes appetizers, such as rice balls, mussels with wine, calamari, and manicotti. A dozen pizza variations include toppings such as prosciutto, shrimp, and bacon. Entrées include clams in white wine sauce, as well as chicken, beef, or veal prepared in five Milanese variations. Pasta dishes include puttanesca, carbonara, piccata, marsala, and ravioli, to name a few. The pair’s South American heritage remains evident in dishes like pasta a lo macho, featuring seafood in a zesty sauce, and a center-cut filet al Gaucho topped with seafood and spicy sauce.
Navarrete says the carbonara has quickly become a customer favorite. “We had people from Italy here and the man told us it was the best carbonara he’d had in his life,” she says.
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