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Little Italy’s newest Italian restaurant offers tableside tagliatelle and wine on tap

Sal’s Pasta and Chops is from the team behind Lucia

By Jessica Huras| Photography by Shlomi Amiga

| July 29, 2025

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Little Italy's newest Italian restaurant offers tableside tagliatelle and wine on tap

Name: Sal’s Pasta and Chops Contact: 614 College St., dinnerwithsal.com, @dinnerwithsal
Neighbourhood: Little Italy
Owners: Michael Sangregorio and Fabio Bondi (Lucia, Local Kitchen and Wine Bar) Chef: Fabio Bondi Accessibility: Not fully accessible

After a successful run with Lucia, their cozy 30-seater in the Junction Triangle, Michael Sangregorio and Fabio Bondi are back on home turf with their newest project, Sal’s Pasta and Chops. The long-time friends both grew up in Italian families that settled along College Street—and both had fathers named Salvatore.

Sal’s is about more than good food. It’s a tribute to Sangregorio and Bondi’s upbringing and the kind of Italian Canadian cooking they remember from childhood: hearty plates of pasta and chops, served without fuss in the neighbourhood that helped shape them.

Sal's owners Michael Sangregorio and Fabio Bondi — Owners Michael Sangregorio (top) and Fabio Bondi

Two women walk past Sal's Pasta and Chops

The new space is also a big step up in size. After years of operating the more intimate Lucia, the pair was ready for a restaurant that could accommodate more diners without sacrificing warmth. “I’m looking forward to not having to turn diners away or rush people out,” says Sangregorio. “There are plenty of seats, so everyone can settle in and enjoy themselves.”

With $12 wine on tap and mains that rarely creep past the $40 mark, they’re aiming to create the kind of welcoming spot where a weeknight dinner doesn’t have to feel like a splurge. “We want it to be a really easy-going, unpretentious neighbourhood place where we get regulars coming in two or three times a week,” says Sangregorio.

The Food

Rooted in the duo’s shared heritage, the menu leans in to the comforting Italian Canadian classics Sangregorio and Bondi grew up eating, with flashes of Bondi’s culinary flair throughout.

This riff on the standard wedge salad swaps iceberg for radicchio and loads it with crispy guanciale, anchovy vinaigrette, gorgonzola dressing and a shower of breadcrumbs. $16

A plate of ziti with a glass of red wine — The ziti al pomodoro has been a fixture at Sangregorio and Bondi’s restaurants since they opened Local Kitchen in Parkdale back in 2009. Each order comes with 25 hand-rolled pasta tubes, slicked in a slow-simmered San Marzano sauce with a hint of peperoncino. They’re topped with a snowy blanket of parmigiano-reggiano. $25

For the Tagliatelle alla Parm Wheel, the interior of a hollowed Parmigiano-Reggiano wheel is set ablaze, melting the cheese into a creamy base for the pasta — For the tagliatelle alla parm wheel, the interior of a hollowed parmigiano-reggiano wheel is set ablaze, melting the cheese into a creamy base for the pasta.

The handmade tagliatelle, tossed tableside in the wheel, absorbs the molten cheese and flame-kissed richness.

A plate of taglietelle alla parm wheel — Here’s the finished plate. $44

Seared lamb chops served over caponata — Here we have seared lamb chops served over caponata, a traditional Sicilian mix of eggplant, tomato, celery and basil that Bondi based on his mom’s recipe. A mint gremolata drizzled overtop keeps the flavours fresh. $34

This whole butterflied branzino, crisped on the flat-top, comes blanketed in punchy salsa verde and finished with fennel fronds. A lemon wedge adds a final hit of brightness. $32

The Drinks

Wine takes the lead here, with over a dozen by-the-glass options including a few Tawse picks on tap. There’s also a reserve list for those nights that call for something a little extra.

A bartender pours a cocktail from a shaker into a coupe

Peroni, Guinness and Revel cider round out the taps, while the cocktails include Italian-inspired originals and tried-and-true classics.

Aperol and sake make an unlikely duo in the Mikan, a bittersweet sipper sharpened with grapefruit and lime. It’s garnished with a briny trio of olives. $16

The Sicilian Sunset is a juicy, citrus-forward cocktail built with blood orange amaro, Amaretto, gin and orange juice. It’s finished with soda for a little lift and a slice of orange on the rim. $16

The Rosehill Colada blends Malibu rum, pineapple juice, coconut milk and lemon. It’s capped with a dark rum floater and a dramatic crown of pineapple leaves. $16

The Negroni Sour swaps out the usual bitter bite for something juicier: Select Aperitivo, gin and vermouth bianco meet orange and lemon juices for a smoother, citrus-charged spin on the original. $16

The Space

With its exposed brick walls and handsome wood details, the space didn’t need much reworking to fit Sangregorio and Bondi’s nostalgia-driven concept. Much of the original design remains intact from its former life as Wolfie, including the apothecary-style bar, tufted leather banquettes and tin ceiling. Old family photos throughout the space pay tribute to the restaurant’s namesake(s). And Penny the wild boar—a long-standing good luck charm in Sangregorio and Bondi’s restaurants—has been moved here and mounted near the front window.

The front dining room at Sal's Pasta and Chops in Toronto

Red banquette seating at Sal's Pasta and Chops

The moody back dining room at Sal's Pasta and Chops in Toronto's Little Italy neighbourhood

An old family photo hangs on a brick wall

Tins of Italian tomatoes — Shelves stacked with Italian pantry staples—for show rather than sale—add colour and character to the back dining room.

The sign outside of Sal's Pasta and Chops

Jessica Huras

Jessica Huras is a freelance writer and editor with over a decade of experience creating food, travel and lifestyle content. She’s a content editor for the LCBO’s Food & Drink magazine, and her work has appeared in the Globe and Mail, the Toronto Star, Chatelaine, Toronto Life and Elle Canada, among other publications.