Piva Modern Italian restaurant and lounge will be serving up a rustic/modern vibe and cuisine when it opens in Anvil Centre next spring.
Arif Mulji is vice-president of business development for Amur Financial Group, which has signed a lease with the City of New Westminster for 3,500 square feet of restaurant space in Anvil Centre. The owner is a New West resident of Italian heritage who wanted to create a place where locals could get a great meal in a nice environment without having to go to Vancouver.
“The owners think of themselves a little bit as foodies, they like to dine out,” said Mulji, who is currently handling public relations for the owner. “One of the biggest challenges has been, ‘Why can’t we have something like a downtown restaurant in our own little community of New West?”
The owner’s grandfather grew up in Italy and moved to B.C., where he farmed poultry, vegetables and fruit, and made wine.
“Their family has a heritage in Italy so that is what the owner has always wanted to do was have a tie back to family and a tie into New Westminster,” Mulji said. “In wanting to keep with the Italian theme, but trying to be local as well, we are going to focus on Italian wine varietals, as well as some B.C. varietals. That was important as well.”
Piva aims to capture the background of Joe Piva, the owner’s grandfather who farmed upon his arrival in Canada.
“We were trying to marry that rustic with modern,” Mulji said. “You will always find some traditional dishes that you would expect from an Italian restaurant, some dishes that are going to be traditional with a spin, and some that are more modern and utilize fresh, Italian ingredients in a different way.”
Piva hopes to complement other independent restaurants such as El Santo and Wild Rice and serve pasta, wood-fire pizza and properly aged and prepared steaks starting in late May or early June.
Mulji said the restaurant and lounge will be a step up from casual fine dining and closer to high-end, but it won’t be super expensive or pretentious. It will also have an outdoor patio on Eighth and Columbia street frontages.
“We want to have a lounge seating environment/wine bar where people can come in after work, before the movies, after a show at Anvil Centre or the New Media Gallery; come in have a glass of wine, maybe a plate of pasta, something simple or quick. We thought that wine bar or lounge component was going to be really important, as well as the dining room,” he said. “The dining room is not necessarily formal, but more sit-down for a meal and conversation.”
Amur Financial Group has hired architects and plans to incorporate some components of Anvil Centre’s design in the restaurant’s decor. The goal is to open in late spring.
“They are also patrons of the New Media Gallery, they have been to shows in Anvil Centre. It’s in the community. It fits with all the things that they want to do with this restaurant,” Mulji said of the owners, who don’t want to be named at this time. “I think the biggest thing is the community. Right from the beginning it’s always been about something in the community, for the community.”
