They are brothers with a unique heritage that reaches into the villages of Italy and plucks their richness of flavor and fragrance. Only a month after the ribbon cutting, Farmacia Trattoria is highly noted as “a good find”. Nestled in the mountains of Northeast Georgia, the restaurant brings new life to the square of downtown Cornelia in a century-old building.
Authentic Italian food
Chefs John and Jason Vullo know Italian food. It is entrenched within the Italian brothers who grew up enjoying their mom’s comforting red sauces and homemade pasta. “Mom was always a talented cook,” Chef John explained. “She used to do a lot of food styling with our dad who was a commercial photographer, so we were always around food. My grandmother always did big dinners for holidays. It was inherent to us.”
The open style of the restaurant allows guests to witness the pageantry of the food preparation. “It is a unique opportunity to showcase the local and imported Italian products,” Chef John commented while standing over an oven from Naples, Italy, reaching temperatures of 800 degrees.
He quickly rolls off the words bolognese (a meat-based Italian sauce) and cecamariti (hand-rolled sourdough pasta) as comfortably as a Southerner might flaunt fried chicken and biscuits. “This is something that is very familiar to us. We are able to put a twist on classic regional dishes to bring food not seen in this area.”
Experienced chefs
Chef John worked under Michelin starred Craig Richards of Lyla Lila. His brother Chef Jason chimes, “Chef John’s tiramisu is better than any I’ve ever had and I’d put a steak on it.” This is duly noted since Chef Jason heads the kitchen at Community Brew & Tap just a few doors down from Farmacia famous for their steaks.
“His tiramisu is based on those classic techniques while adding some special textural notes. It’s an intense experience by itself,” Chef Jason added, boasting of his brother’s talent.
There is a familiarity as the two move around the ovens, rolling freshly made dough, and roasting tomatoes. The family connection is evident and the phrase “well-oiled machine” comes to mind to watch the team maneuver in preparation for the restaurant opening.
“We work well together,” older brother Chef Jason explained. “Our sister, Gina, is a sous chef working alongside us.”
The three siblings bring life to the kitchens of Community and Farmacia. “Because we all love food and work so well together, the synergy that we create makes it all top-notch,” Chef Jason added confidently. The comfort of family ripples through the restaurant walls giving guests an at-home experience while dining in the luxurious atmosphere.
The vision of the owners
Owners Jay and Melissa Reeder have a knack for creating designs that are undeniably beautiful making dining as much about the surroundings as the food. The remodeled building of Farmacia once hosted medicines for all types of ailments. For 83 years it served as a pharmacy.
“There was all the modern stuff in the attic like wheelchairs and walkers but then we went down in the basement and found all these old medicine bottles and newspapers dated back to the 40s and 50s. An old ledger book that recorded all the purchases, billed monthly, with the names of a lot of people’s grandparents and great-grandparents.”
It was the medicine bottles that intrigued Reeder the most. “I wanted to preserve the history of the building. So we displayed the bottles above the door hoping to give the vision ‘Let food be thine medicine‘ as people come and go from the restaurant.”
Reeder loves offering a place to celebrate life experiences with those in the community. Chef Jason joined the team during COVID and later brought his brother John along when the idea of an Italian restaurant began to surface. “To have this caliber of chefs is amazing,” Reeder added.
Artisan imported flour
All the dough is sourdough-based. “This is a bread dough that has been fermented for 72 hours which creates a very unique, dense texture, that is still airy, giving a really chewy crisp crust. What we do, we’ll roll that in some benne seeds and semolina flour and roast that in our stone woodfire oven. And it’s a really beautiful European style sourbread,” Chef Jason talked about the process.
The artisan flour is imported from Italy and milled to order especially for Farmacia. The connections the chefs have within the industry bring the ingredients to life and give those who dine the experience of being in Northern Italy or basking on the Southern border. Each bite gives an explosion of flavor from the two-year-aged parmesan, Prosciutto di Parma (one of the finest hams in the world), and Sicilian Oregano, to the vinegar made from grape musk aged for years. All come from Italy to the doorsteps of Farmacia Trattoria from the expert selections of the chef brothers.
The pasta is all handmade, giving flavors most could only experience in true Italian eateries. “One of the unique traits of our pasta is the high egg count. We crack farm eggs for our pasta every day. On average in a kilo of flour, we’re using around 32 eggs,” Chef John said.
“Depending on the region, how many eggs were used was a sign of wealth because a large part of Italy didn’t have access to dairy. Southern Italian focuses on oils and tomatoes whereas Northern Italy has a lot more options such as butter and dairy-rich products,” Chef Jason explained. “Our egg dough has a ton of eggs, a combination of yoke and whole eggs, olive oil for elasticity, and the imported artisan Italian flour.”
The menu and reservations
The menu is arranged in true Italian restaurant style with Crispy Artichoke and Veal Riccotta meatballs to start, along with Truffle Wagyu Beef Ravioli and Tagliatelle Bolognese. Followed by the authentic flavor of Napoletano pizza fired to perfection in a 750-degree oven to achieve its signature look and crisp texture. The entrees of double-cut lamb chops or braised veal bring the Mediterranean diet full circle.
Reservations are important although Reeder said they will always try to seat those who did not make one. Farmacia Trattoria is located at 639 Irvin Street, Cornelia, GA. For more information please call (706) 410-1699 or visit the Farmacia Trattoria website.
“Days go into every single bite,” Reeder said. “Our dining showcases the artisan flavors of Italy.”
In this writer’s opinion, I can check Italy off my bucket list. I’ve already been there at Farmacia Trattoria and never left my comfort zone.
