At Il Capriccio in Whippany, Chef Tony Grande has been cooking genuine home style dishes for more than three decades

by Jessica Jones-Gorman • Photos By Amessé Photography

When Tony Grande opened his first restaurant, The Bel’vedere, in Clifton in 1976, authentic Italian food was basically a rarity in the United States.

“The American consumer was just not ready for it,” Grande said. “People wanted Italian food with an American twist and quality Italian ingredients were just not available.”

So, Grande catered to his customers and filled his menu with basic Parmesans and marinaras, even though he yearned to create something different. After eight years in business, he started scouting around for a more upscale location-a place where a new batch of consumers might appreciate his vision.

“I would get out of work at 2 a.m. and drive around looking for a new location,” Grande said. “I realized Morris County was an ideal area for the type of dining I wanted to provide. When I found this location in Whippany, I knew it was a perfect fit.”

Grande renovated the space and created a setting that was both elegant and comfortable, employing Italian artists to paint beautiful frescoes on the walls and ceiling, to create a Venetian theme. He named the restaurant Il Capriccio.

“I chose the name not because I am capricious, but because ‘capriccio’ is the highest desire for my family and my children,” Grande said with a smile. “I wanted our dreams to become reality, and Il Capriccio was my goal.”

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Grande, a native of Calabria, Italy, who attended culinary school in his native country and worked as a chef at some of its most renowned restaurants before joining the gourmet staff aboard a transatlantic cruise liner, searched for the best and most authentic ingredients to fill his menu.

“We opened in December of 1984, and right about that time, more authentic Italian ingredients became available in this country,” Grande said. “By that time people had started to become knowledgeable about different cuisines, customers were traveling more and their palates had become a little more refined. It made it much easier for us to serve authentic Italian food that people loved and respected.”

Thirty years later, Il Capriccio remains one of the Garden State’s most respected gourmet Italian eateries.

“Whatever I cook is crafted from only the best ingredients, and from my passion and love,” Grande said. “The authenticity of each dish starts with only the best olive oil, tomatoes, and balsamic vinegar. You can get olive oil from all over Europe that’s both good and bad. You can use tomatoes imported from Italy that are not completely perfect. You can cook with Pecorino Romano instead of the beautifully delicate Parmigiano Reggiano, but those inconsistencies will change your recipe completely. If you want your meal to be completely authentic, you have to make sure that your ingredients are only the best there is around.”

Grande prides himself on having one of the best wine lists in New Jersey, and using only truly authentic Italian ingredients that allow him to “show off.”

“Our menu is special because it is authentic, fresh, and outstanding,” he said. “I make changes to it regularly, but there are standard items that my customers love and will not allow me to change.”

These dishes include the Chilean sea bass served over sautéed broccoli rabe and cannellini beans and drizzled with extra virgin olive oil…or the veal ossobucco served over risotto.

“There are five or six items that are always on the menu and in high demand,” Grande said. “We shift the other dishes around according to what’s available and what’s in season. But I’ve been cooking for 32 years, so I know what they like and what they expect.”

Grande is very visible on the restaurant floor, greeting customers at their tables, talking about food, life, and even sharing his recipes.

“I love it when customers ask for the recipes,” he said. “I give it every time as long as they promise not to open a restaurant next to mine.”

Since 2008, Grande and his wife, Clara, along with their son, Natale, have been sharing Il Capriccio’s authentic ingredients with customers at their specialty Italian gourmet grocery, Flying Meatballs Market in East Hanover. The store offers savory paninis, imported meats and cheeses, delectable desserts baked by Clara and her daughter, Teresa, and food items from the family’s own brand.

“It’s an Italian market that sells all kinds of specialty ingredients, things that people cannot normally find in your average supermarket,” Grande said. “We wanted to give our recipes directly to the consumer while also providing the local community with healthy, ready-to-eat meals that they can heat and serve at their dinner table.”

Grande added that he can’t pinpoint one signature specialty dish. “There are too many to choose from,” he said. “I love cooking each and every one.” But he does single out his whole-roasted Mediterranean sea bass as a customer favorite.

“We cook the entire fish and clean it in front of the customer,” Grande said. “It’s not available on Saturday nights because it is a lot of work and takes a lot of time to serve.”

The chef says the industry has changed drastically since he started his career. “I used to travel to New York to get wild sea bass from Europe, now I have it delivered daily; we used to only have 20 varieties of fine Italian wine, now there are thousands,” he said. But the bottom line for Grande is still about crafting a delicious meal.

“I have to say the restaurant industry is one of the most dangerous in the world—it’s bad on your health, it’s hard on your family, and can be an absolute drain on your pocket,” Grande said. “But if you have a passion for it and truly love what you do, everything becomes easy to handle. I’ve devoted 52 years of my life to this business, and I truly can say that I love it a little more every day. I love to put a plate in front of someone and see that happy face.”

Il Capriccio
633 Route 10, Whippany
973.884.9175 / ilcapriccio.com