Fiorella's Celebrates Twelve Years in Newtonville

When meeting Remon Karian, owner of  in Newtonville, one might wonder, “How did a nice Armenian fellow from Waltham become the owner of one of the most popular Italian restaurants in Newton?”

It turns out, it isn’t such a surprising turn of events.

“My dad’s from Southern France, from Marseille,” Karian explains. “Having that Mediterranean influence has really allowed the food to come naturally to me. I have a passion for it, it’s the way we grew up and it just works.”

Karian’s father, Marcel, started Café Fiorella in Belmont in 1986. When Karian was a teenager, he helped make pizzas at the family restaurant but never really thought he’d go into the business.

After earning a degree from , Karian did a number of other jobs including working in real estate. 

But in 2000, Karian decided that it was time to give into his “passion for hospitality,” and he opened Fiorella’s in Newtonville.

“Just having a culinary background or a business background doesn’t allow you to balance things,” Karian says when asked about his ability to bring both strengths to his successful restaurants. “And that’s really what’s allowed me, over the years, to grow the business.”

And grow it has.

Six years ago, Karian repurchased the old location in Belmont. He renamed it Fiorella Express to reflect the idea that customers could get the same food on-the-go that they knew and loved from both Café Fiorella and Fiorella’s in Newtonville.

In 2010, Karian opened a second Fiorella Express in Oak Square on the Brighton-Newton border. And almost exactly a year ago, Karian expanded the Newtonville restaurant to include a larger bar area, another small dining room and an open hostess area. He also improved the patio seating.

Aside from his restaurant operations, Karian has started selling Fiorella’s “signature” marinara sauce, the label of which bears the charming tag line “Inspiration from Italy. Hospitality from the heart.”

It is this philosophy that permeates both the physical ambiance of Fiorella’s and the food itself.

Chef Earl Quinn is Karian’s partner in bringing this ideal to their much-loved menu. He helped his longtime friend open the original Fiorella’s and has worked with Karian for most of the restaurant’s history.

“Over the years, it’s really evolved,” says Karian of Fiorella’s menu. “I try always to provide a value, but bring in a lot of local and fresh flavors that we’re known for. We have a lot of traditional items, but we also have a number of contemporary dishes.”

Quinn elaborates on this, saying, “We’re a scratch kitchen. For example, we’ve been buying our mozzarella locally, sure, but now we’ve got a girl who’s actually going to make it for us.”

Other local contributors to Fiorella’s fare include (used in the very popular Scallops Limoncello), , , , and .

When asked about the most popular item on the menu, both Karian and Quinn respond enthusiastically.

“Definitely the chicken parm,” they say, practically in unison.

“It’s definitely our number one best-seller,” Quinn says.

Other popular items include the Arancini (risotto balls stuffed with mozzarella cheese and served with their famous marinara sauce), the Swordfish Caponata and the Beef Braciole. Their expanded bar has also allowed for a rise in popularity of their wine menu and the opportunity to also pair their Italian cuisine with draft beers and specially created cocktails.

For Karian and Quinn, the other essential elements of Fiorella’s success have always been their customers and Newton itself. Over the years, Karian and the folks at Fiorella's have worked hard to be a part of the Newton community, whether its donating to charity, sponsoring a 5K for St. Jude's or just bringing patrons that warm, Italian comfort food.

“We’ve become so friendly with all of them, all of the customers,” Karian says, warmly. “We do as much as we can with the local community [and] we try to give back as much as we can.”