Franco Borda and his son Anthony Borda plan to open Borda’s Italian Eats out of the back of the Francoluigi’s Pizzeria & Italian Restaurant space in the coming months. When What Now Philadelphia spoke with Franco Borda via phone, he said that they were working on the permits for the restaurant so while he can’t give a firm opening date, he projects that it should be around mid-June.
Borda said that his son Anthony will run the restaurant and that it will serve more casual fare than Francoluigi’s in a walk-up and take-out atmosphere. Borda’s will sell pizza pies and slices from the family restaurant’s menu and the dishes that make up the traditional cuisine of Southern Italy. The menu has not been set, but if you know and love Francoluigi’s food, you are probably already familiar with the favorites that the restaurant will serve. Borda described the Pavarotti pizza the way that a singer would, with each ingredient corresponding to part of the character of the famed opera singer’s voice.
As for the plans for the rest of the restaurant space, Borda said that the front area that houses the main part of the Francoluigi restaurant would need to be renovated and that the plan is to open the main restaurant area as a private space, by invitation only or a space that could be booked, to showcase the talents of artists. It would not be a club, but a space for musical performances of jazz and opera, or it could be rented by corporate clients. Borda said that he would like to perform opera again and that while he is no longer a tenor, he could perform as a lyric baritone. Borda estimates that this performance space would probably not be ready until 2023.
In terms of the specific dishes, Borda mentioned favorites like the cheesesteak pizza, buffalo chicken pizza, the tomato pie, and chicken parmesan as menu items for Borda’s Italian Eats and said that he advised Anthony to make the pizzas and food that no one else will attempt to make. This is exciting news as the Borda family prepares to return to the Philadelphia food scene.
