Today we’d like to introduce you to Gabriele Pianezze.
Hi Gabriele, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
The Story Behind Amale Tre Focacceria & Italian Deli
Where Family, Faith, Passion, and Authentic Italian Food Come Together
In the heart of downtown Norfolk, directly across from the Scope Arena, sits a small family-owned Italian deli that has quickly become more than just a restaurant — it has become a destination. Amale Tre Focacceria & Italian Deli was built on love, sacrifice, tradition, and the dream of creating something authentic in a world filled with shortcuts.
Owned by husband-and-wife team Chef Gabriele Pianezze and Nicole “Nikki” Pianezze . Amale Tre was born from generations of Italian heritage, homemade recipes, and a passion for bringing people together around the table.
The name Amale Tre means far more than just a business title. It was inspired by their three daughters — Shai, Sophia, and Milania — and represents the meaning “Love Them Three.” Family is not just part of the brand; family is the foundation of everything they do.
Before opening their storefront, the couple spent years building their dream from the ground up. They operated an Italian food truck called La Cucina di Sophia, followed by farmers market” La Cucina di Milania , concepts featuring homemade pasta, sauces, meatballs, focaccia, and Italian specialties. Long days, sleepless nights, and countless sacrifices slowly transformed their vision into reality.
Chef Gabriele, originally from Milano Italy, brought authentic recipes and old-world techniques learned from family traditions overseas. Nikki brought the creativity, baking, branding, and together their relentless determination that helped turn the business into what customers now know as one of Norfolk’s hidden gems.
Together, they created what many now call Virginia’s first true focacceria — specializing in handcrafted stuffed focaccia sandwiches, fresh pasta dishes, imported meats and cheeses, homemade sauces, desserts, espresso, gelato, and elevated Italian comfort food.
But Amale Tre is more than food.
It is about hospitality.
It is about community.
It is about creating moments and memories.
Whether it’s a couple sharing wine and focaccia before a Broadway show, families gathering over homemade pasta, or customers becoming lifelong friends, the mission has always stayed the same: make people feel at home.
The restaurant’s tagline, “Eat Casual, Dine Exceptional,” perfectly reflects the experience they strive to create — approachable yet elevated, authentic yet welcoming.
Today, Amale Tre continues to grow through word of mouth, loyal customers, catering, community events, and an unwavering commitment to quality. What started as a dream between a husband and wife has become a symbol of resilience, faith, family, and authentic Italian culture in downtown Norfolk.
And for the Pianezze family, this is only the beginning.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
A Story of Family, Faith, Survival, and Starting Over
For Chef Gabriele Pianezze and Nicole “Nikki” Chicerchia, the story of Amale Tre Focacceria & Italian Deli is not simply about opening a restaurant. It is a story about perseverance through heartbreak, setbacks, illness, and rebuilding — again and again.
Before Amale Tre ever existed, the family owned and operated Salvatore’s in Virginia Beach. Like many small business owners, they poured everything they had into the restaurant industry, learning firsthand the realities of long hours, financial pressure, and sacrifice. Eventually, they made the difficult decision to sell the business, stepping away without knowing exactly where life would lead them next.
But walking away from one chapter did not mean giving up on the dream.
Determined to continue sharing authentic Italian food and culture, the couple invested everything into launching an Italian food truck — a new beginning built from passion, grit, and hope. That dream was suddenly shaken when the food truck was stolen from a church parking lot, leaving them devastated emotionally and financially.
For many people, that moment could have ended the journey.
Instead, they chose to rebuild.
Shortly after, the world was hit by COVID-19, creating even more uncertainty for restaurants and food businesses everywhere. While others were shutting down, the family adapted however they could — turning to local farmers markets to survive. They spent long days preparing fresh pasta, sauces, focaccia bread, meatballs, and Italian specialties by hand, waking before sunrise and working late into the night to keep the business alive.
Those markets became more than just a place to sell food. They became the foundation of the Amale Tre community. Customers connected not only with the food, but with the story, the authenticity, and the family behind it.
That perseverance eventually opened the door to Selden Market in downtown Norfolk — a space known throughout the city as an incubator for local entrepreneurs and small businesses. Operating inside Selden gave the family an opportunity to introduce their authentic focaccia concept to a broader audience while refining the brand that would later become Amale Tre Focacceria & Italian Deli.
But the challenges did not stop there.
Throughout the growth of the business, Chef Gabriele faced one of the greatest battles of his life: cancer. While continuing to cook, create, and lead the business, he endured treatments, uncertainty, and recovery — all while remaining committed to his family and customers.
More recently, the family faced yet another major obstacle when Gabriele began suffering serious heart complications that ultimately resulted in open-heart surgery.
Through every hardship — business losses, theft, COVID, illness, surgeries, and financial uncertainty — the family refused to quit.
That resilience is now woven into the walls of Amale Tre.
Today, guests walking through the doors may see handcrafted focaccia sandwiches, fresh pasta, espresso, desserts, wine, and smiling faces — but behind every dish is a story of survival, faith, and determination.
The name Amale Tre, inspired by their three daughters Shai, Sophia, and Milania, means “Love Them Three.” That meaning reflects the heart behind the business: family first, always.
For Nikki and Gabriele, Amale Tre represents more than a restaurant. It represents proof that even after loss, setbacks, illness, and uncertainty, it is possible to rebuild something beautiful.
And perhaps that is why customers connect so deeply with the experience.
Because Amale Tre is not manufactured.
It is lived.
Every single day.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
More Than a Restaurant — A Family Legacy
In a world of corporate chains and rushed dining experiences, Amale Tre Focacceria & Italian Deli stands apart by doing something increasingly rare: keeping things personal.
Located in the heart of downtown Norfolk across from the Scope Arena, Amale Tre is not owned by a restaurant group or managed by investors. It is run every single day by husband-and-wife team Chef Gabriele Pianezze and Nicole “Nikki” Pianezze — truly a mom-and-pop establishment in every sense of the phrase.
Walk through the doors and chances are you will see one of them greeting customers, preparing food, baking focaccia, delivering plates, or talking with guests as if they were family. On weekends, you may even see their young daughter helping bus tables, learning to bake, or proudly assisting behind the counter.
At just eight years old, she already understands what Amale Tre represents: family, hard work, hospitality, and legacy.
That family atmosphere is exactly what customers say they feel the moment they walk in.
What truly separates Amale Tre from other Italian restaurants is its authenticity and specialization. The restaurant proudly holds the distinction of being Virginia’s very first focacceria — specializing in handcrafted, house-baked focaccia bread made fresh daily.. We also serve fresh pasta dishes, affogato, gelato and espresso. We offer our meals to go options that we started while working the farmers markets.
On any given day if it is not to busy you can ask Chef Gabriele to create a dish for you and you will leave speechless
For many guests, the experience is unlike anything else in the area.
Customers who have traveled throughout Italy often tell the family something remarkable: that the focaccia at Amale Tre rivals — and most often it even surpasses — what they experienced overseas.
That compliment is not taken lightly.
Chef Gabriele, originally from Italy, brings generations of tradition and technique into every recipe. The restaurant imports many of its meats directly from Italy, uses authentic ingredients whenever possible, and focuses heavily on craftsmanship rather than shortcuts.
Fresh mozzarella is made in-house and regularly showcased on the restaurant’s Instagram and social media videos, where followers can watch the cheese being stretched and prepared by hand. Much of the fresh pasta is homemade as well, along with desserts like their signature tiramisu, which has become a customer favorite.
Nearly everything inside Amale Tre is baked, prepared, or crafted in-house — a rarity in today’s restaurant industry.
But perhaps the greatest ingredient behind the restaurant’s success is not the imported meats, handmade cheeses, or fresh focaccia.
It is the heart behind it all.
For Nikki and Gabriele, customer service is deeply personal because the business itself is deeply personal. Every guest matters because every customer becomes part of the story they are building for their daughters and future generations.
Amale Tre is not simply about selling sandwiches or pasta dishes. It is about creating a legacy — one rooted in faith, resilience, culture, hospitality, and family.
And in every loaf of focaccia, every handmade dessert, and every conversation with a guest, that passion is unmistakably present.
We also host different events like blind folded dinners, family pasta and game night
Is there anyone you’d like to thank or give credit to?
God deserves the credit
He sent the right people at the right time for every phase and chapter.
My husband Gabriele deserves the credit for keep going despite his health issues , he never gave up on the families vision and legacy for our daughters
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.bestitalianfoodever.com
- Instagram: Amale_Tre
- Facebook: Amale Tre Focacceria
