From Italy to SLC: Strada Cucina Italiana combines traditional flavors with affordable prices

SALT LAKE CITY — For Matteo Sogne, opening Strada Cucina Italiana in downtown Salt Lake City is a sort of dream come true. 

“I grew up around restaurants, you know. I was in the restaurant business back home,” said Sogne. He moved to Salt Lake from Modena, Italy in 2016 to attend the University of Utah, where he received a swim scholarship and studied math and economics. 

After he graduated in 2020, he spent some time teaching math while he continued working in the restaurant industry to gain experience. He opened his first restaraunt, Matteo, in 2023 with the help of his family. 

“My family moved here … to help me open up [Matteo],” he said. 

Although Matteo, an upscale dining restaurant, opened first, Sogne said he initially wanted to open a casual dining restaurant like Strada. 

“I wanted to open up a easy, casual, quick-service restaurant in 2019. I believe that Italian food should be very easy, approachable, and when I go around and see, you know, $40 plate of pasta it kind of makes me laugh,” he said. “When you’re a 25 year old kid going around telling people ‘Oh, I’m going to open up the best restaurant in Salt Lake,’ people are like, ‘Yeah, right, okay, whatever.’ And so we ended up opening Matteo to kind of establish ourself in the community because the restaurant’s a lot easier to open than a sandwich shop.” 

Strada Cucina Italiana brings street food to SLC

“Strada” means “street” in Italian. 

When Sogne and his family were brainstorming Strada, they maintained some of the principles they’d established with Matteo: fresh ingredients. 

“The idea was to open up something easier, more casual, with the same ingredients,” said Sogne. 

One difference? Prices are lower at Strada — nothing on the menu is over $17. 

Sogne explained that running a sit-down restaurant costs more than one that offers counter service. By leveraging the downtime and manpower at Matteo, the team prepares ingredients in advance, allowing Strada to operate with lower labor costs and a streamlined service model.

Although there is currently only one Strada Cucina Italiana, Sogne said they could be replicated in the future. 

“At some point we can think about opening up more,” he said. “We don’t really need too much on site because it’s basically a matter of putting together stuff.” 

For now, Strada is located on 30 E Broadway in downtown. 

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