New Italian restaurant and pizza kitchen makes its debut in Cape Coral
Matthew Ciaramitaro has made it official.
After taking over LaMotta’s in Cape Coral in the summer of 2022, the new owner/chef was finally ready for a change.
“When I still had the name LaMotta’s, no one was happy,” Ciaramitaro said. “It wasn’t LaMotta’s anymore. It was time for a new name.”
So on Nov. 1, Matthew’s Pizza Kitchen was born. It’s in the Royal Oak plaza at the intersection of Pine Island Road and NE 3rd Avenue, just east of the Kia dealership. Before it was LaMotta’s, it was Don Anthony’s Pizza.
“Some customers were sad to see LaMotta’s go,” Ciaramitaro said. “It had been in Lee County since 1979 (in south Fort Myers before moving to Cape Coral in 2020). But about 85 percent have seen what is being done here and are happy. Out with the old and in with the new.”
Changes have been subtle and not-so-subtle.
“I decided to change out the pizza dough and sauce right away,” Ciaramitaro said. “(LaMotta’s) was a standard dough. I do a 36-48 hour fermentation on it. I brought in my own sauces.”
And customers noticed.
“They said the sauce was less acidic, more flavorful,” Ciaramitaro said. “One of my sauces has 26 items in it. It’s very flavorful.”
The rest of the mostly-from-scratch menu underwent more gradual changes.
“I took off some items LaMotta’s had,” Ciaramitaro said. “I added some in like salads and sandwiches. Then I cut some. I’m not a big menu planner. I want to add everything in, but there’s not enough time in the day to prep it all. It was nice to do a turnkey restaurant, then slash away. It made it easier.”
Ciaramitaro says Matthew’s Pizza Kitchen features “homestyle Italian like grandma used to make.”
It starts with appetizers such as rice balls, wings, bruschetta and meatballs that Ciaramitaro “worked hard on,” plus salads and soup of the day, and ends with desserts, including house-made cannoli.
In between, you’ll find traditional dishes, from chicken and veal piccata, parmigiana, and marsala to baked pasta and specialty dishes (think Tour of Italy, Palermo trio and gnocchi).
And there are those sandwiches Ciaramitaro mentioned — about a dozen of them — including eggplant parmigiana, sausage and peppers, Philly cheesesteak and the Spinelli with pepperoni, ham, salami, mortadella, capicola, Italian sausage sliced meatballs, lettuce, tomatoes, peppers, cheese and oil and vinegar.
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But it’s the pizza that has been getting the attention as of late.
“I adjusted the dough maybe six weeks ago,” Ciaramitaro said. “People have really responded to it. It has more crunch to it now. There are lots of flavors in it.”
There are about 12 specialty pizzas including a CBR (chicken, bacon, ranch) Pie, the 17-by-12 inch Gran Papa pizza and Ciaramitaro’s favorite — the Sicilian.
“My pizza is done my way,” said Ciaramitaro, who is from Michigan. “You can’t put a label on it. It’s my pizza, my way.”
And his pizza has gotten quite popular.
“At first, about half the orders were pizza,” he said. “Now it’s more than half.”
Ciaramitaro has been so busy in the kitchen that he hasn’t had much time to change the décor inside the restaurant with seating for 30 at eight low-top tables.
“We added some table cloths, light on the tables,” he said. “We spiced it up a bit, but it’s still casual quaint dining. I want to put in some brick panels, paint, add more stuff.”
He wants to do more in the kitchen down the road as well, including making his own desserts and bread. Ciaramitaro began his baking venture at Bellacino's in Michigan in the late 1990s before eventually attending culinary school in his 30s. His family owns Bellacino’s Pizza & Grinders in Fort Myers.
For now though, he's eager to continue building a following for Matthew’s Pizza Kitchen.
“Come on in,” he said. “We’ll make you feel welcome. We want to make you happy with our food and with our service.”
Matthew’s Pizza Kitchen, 303 NE 3rd Ave., Suite 1, Cape Coral; open 4-9 p.m. Tuesday and Wednesday, 11 a.m.-9 p.m. Thursday and Friday and noon-9 p.m. Saturday and Sunday; eat in, takeout and delivery available; (239) 540-8555; matthewspizzakitchen.com
Robyn George is a food and dining writer for The Fort Myers News-Press. Send news to rhgeorge@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Naples Daily News: Matthew's Pizza Kitchen takes over for LaMotta's in Cape Coral
