A taste of Italy arrived in King Street recently with the opening of new eatery Caffe Pompei.
Owner Mario Celiberti and his family previously ran a Love Brownies franchise from the King Street premises – but during lockdown decided to try something different and open an authentic Italian café instead.
Caffe Pompei, which is named after Mario’s home city, serves a delicious range of pastries, cakes, croissants and coffee to eat in or takeaway as well as soup, paninis, soft drinks, milkshakes and ice creams.
The breakfast range includes toast, crumpets and granola pots and there is a variety of five Italian specials to choose from each day for lunch featuring homemade dishes such as pizza, calzone, focaccia, risotto, cannelloni and lasagne.
And you can even enjoy an Italian Afternoon Tea which includes scones, mini desserts and sandwiches.
Mario says: “We opened Love Brownies in 2019 and ran it until lockdown in March 2020.
“We were happy with the business and doing fine but lockdown gave us a lot of time to think about how to improve what we had and to find a way to come back with a bang!
“It was a chance for renewal and I wanted to bring something of myself into the business – so here I am creating the food I’ve enjoyed since I was a child.
“I was born and bred in Pompei which is a friendly southern Italian city with good produce – I’ve tried to bring that bit of Italy here and I think we’ve added some sparkle to King Street!
“We’ve returned with more character and a smart place which people are happy to come and sit and relax in – so I think we’ve achieved what we set out to do.”
Mario opened the family café, which he runs with the help of Scottish wife Connie and daughters Maisie and Mia, on July 29 and less than a month later the Caffe Pompei Facebook page is filled with positive reviews.
Customers have been praising the excellent service, attentive staff, amazing Cappuccinos and pastries and what one happy reviewer describes as “traditional Italian specials, desserts and coffee that make you feel like you have been transported to the small streets of Sorrento.”
Mario says: “We are very friendly and what you see is what you get – we want to have fun and I’d really like to thank the people of Stirling who have been fantastic in supporting us and the other independent businesses in King Street.
“We’ve been really busy since we reopened and it’s been lovely to see everybody – they know they can pop in and enjoy a safe experience with great coffee, good food and a friendly, family atmosphere.
“Caffe Pompei is my passion and my dream and it’s all going well so far.”
Caffe Pompei is based at 55, King Street and is open Monday to Friday from 9am until 5pm and on Sundays from 10am until 4pm.
More details about Caffe Pompei and photos of the food on offer can be found on the Facebook page – www.facebook.com/caffepompeistirling/ and on Instagram @caffepompei
You can also contact the restaurant by calling 07967 641767.
