LucaBella: Glendora’s Own Italian Café

Named after the owners’ two children, LucaBella Fine Foods brings fresh, healthy Italian fare to Glendora at a sensible price. Owner and chef Christian Felippa has worked for over a decade at some of the most illustrious restaurants in Southern California, most recently as executive chef at The Raymond in Pasadena.

Longing to spend more time with his cherished family, Felippa left The Raymond to begin a catering business. However, when he and his wife, Lorie, rented the vacant space next to Ace Hardware on Route 66, they discovered it had a sizable seating area in addition to the kitchen. This prompted them to offer Felippa’s culinary talents at a storefront location as well.

Serving everything from hearty pastas to gourmet deli sandwiches and build-your-own salads, LucaBella tantalizes the senses.  Inviting aromas waft out the open door, drawing you in to the quaint Italian café dining area, where you can sit down to enjoy your meal or order scrumptious take-home weeknight dinners. 

Lorie explained, “Being a working mom (she is a teacher in Arcadia), I felt if Chris had some prepared foods, people that were working but wanted healthy options for their family could come pick up dinner, take it home and not lose that quality time that it takes to make healthy meals for their family.”

My husband and I enjoyed the Sautéed Chicken Panini ($8.95) and Grilled Steak Salad ($12.95). Served with a side salad of mixed greens and house balsamic dressing, the panini was layered with a thick slab of chicken breast, succulent tomato confit, marinated artichoke hearts, fontina and basil pesto. The ciabatta bread was perfectly toasted and seasoned, not too salty, as I find some panini breads, and not a wilted leaf was to be found among the salad.

The grilled steak salad featured sliced, tender steak grilled to a juicy medium rare on a bed of crisp greens as fresh as if they had come straight from my own garden.  Tossed among the greens were ripe, velvety avocado slices, roasted red peppers, goat cheese and large chunks of real bacon.  As my vegetable-hating husband raved between mouthfuls, “When I think of experiencing salad, this is not what I imagine.” He then proved it by polishing off the entire salad.

We barely had room for dessert, but managed to squeeze in some homemade Toscanella, which consisted of a cream puff and custard concoction on puff pastry, topped with confectioner’s sugar and the largest chocolate shavings I have ever seen.  In my opinion, Luca Bella has single-handedly raised the bar for dining in our lovely town.

Luca Bella Fine Foods
Address: 529 South Glendora Ave. #A
Business Hours: Monday through Saturday, 8 am – 4 pm
Phone Number: 626-825-2106
Website: http://www.lucabellafinefoods.com
Price Range: $4.45 - $12.95
Type of Cuisine:  Italian
Standout Dish: Grilled chicken kabobs and panini sandwiches. Lorie’s all time favorite is the roasted pepper and goat cheese panini: “It’s such a sweet, tangy combination…some people who don’t know if they like goat cheese will try it and come back within the week and say ‘That combination is so good!’”