Trattoria Napoli Opens on 7th Street, Backed by $50,000 Zephyrhills Grant

Trattoria Napoli held its grand opening on 7th Street in Zephyrhills Thursday, Aug. 27, becoming the newest downtown business to open its doors with help from a city grant designed to draw investment back into the historic district.

The restaurant received a $50,000 commercial improvement grant from the City of Zephyrhills Community Redevelopment Agency, money that went toward fixing up the building before the first plate of pasta ever left the kitchen.

Owner and chef Matthew Zappoli grew up cooking with his family and started in a neighborhood pizzeria as a teenager. He went on to the Culinary Institute of America and later worked under Chef Charlie Palmer at Aureole in New York before deciding to open his own place in Zephyrhills. He's at the restaurant by 7 or 8 each morning making pasta from scratch, a routine he plans to keep up daily.

The name is personal. Trattoria Napoli honors his grandfather, who came from Naples, which is also where the Zappoli family name traces back to. A trattoria, he explains, is meant to feel casual, like a neighborhood cafe, while still serving made-from-scratch food with real ingredients.

Part of a bigger push downtown

The $50,000 award is one piece of a roughly $500,000 pool the city's CRA budgeted this year to help small businesses set up shop or renovate in the downtown redevelopment district. CRA Director Gail Hamilton said the grants are becoming a popular way for the city to compete for the kind of independent businesses that give Zephyrhills its character.

Hamilton said the district has recently picked up new coffee shops, a pilates studio and a pizza spot alongside Trattoria Napoli. If a business owner has an idea but no building, she said, her office will help them find one.

The CRA hasn't said which business might be next in line for a grant, but Hamilton's office is still fielding applications as the city works through this year's budget for the program.

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