Frankie’s Italian Chophouse celebrates first year in St. Pete

Frankie’s Italian Chophouse is marking one year on the city’s culinary scene.

The restaurant was founded by restaurateur Frank Schittino, who’s been running the popular Italian eatery Café Cibo – a staple on 4th St. North – since 1999. Frankie’s Italian Chophouse represents a new chapter in his culinary journey.

Schittino recognized a gap in the local dining scene; despite the variety of cuisines available on north 4th Street, a traditional steakhouse was notably absent. This observation, coupled with his passion for Italian cuisine and his Sicilian roots, led to the conception of Frankie’s. It opened July 7, 2023.

The restaurant is located at 8901 4th St. N., in a spacious 5,400-square-foot building that was completely remodeled.

“We did a full renovation, all the way down to the concrete walls,” Schittino said. “We actually had to get a mold company come in and do a treatment on the whole interior. It was a mess, because it had been closed up for 24 years.”

Schittino said they’ve learned a lot of lessons along the way, especially about the various meat cuts and types of wagyu beef available.

“We’ve gone through three different chefs, but we finally found the right one,” he said. “We’ve gone through some growing pains, but we’re learning a lot. It kind of has cost us some money, because we’ve spent quite a bit when we had two or three different types of wagyu. You have to go with just one good one that you think is best, but at the same time, you don’t want something that costs so much money that the people are not going to buy it.”

 Shittino said the restaurant’s best-selling steak is the eight-ounce Filet mignon. “Our biggest seller in the whole place is our fresh-stretched mozzarella. We make it to order; we have somebody in the back that that’s all she does, and it’s hard for her to keep up. She’s constantly making mozzarella.”

Shittino added that Frankie’s is focused on adding weekly specials to draw in more repeat customers, and bring in fans from Cafe Cibo.

“It helps that hang signs at Cafe Cibo letting [customers] know to come visit our new location,” Shittino said. “We’ve even had some new faces coming over there from the chophouse as well, so they have really been supporting both.”