Location in a 'no man's land' part of Chiswick High Road partly to blame
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Valentina Fine Foods has closed its Chiswick restaurant.
A notice went up on the door this Tuesday (26 September) announcing the closure of the Italian delicatessan, restaurant,, wine and gift shop which is located opposite Turnham Green, at 404 Chiswick High Road.
Bruno Zoccola, a senior member of the family business whose nearest branches are in in East Sheen and Putney, told Chiswickw4.com that they had faced difficult trading times.
He said the location was "a bit of a no man's land" and that the restaurant was surrounded by empty units. The planned redevelopment by Lend Lease, which appears to have ground to a halt "would have helped", he commented, as it would have brought more life to the area.
High rent and rates were also a factor in their decision to restructure the business.
Currency changes meant they had to pay about 20 per cent more for products imported from Italy. There was also a lot of competition from Italian eateries in Chiswick.
"We gave it our best shot and we'd like to thank our loyal customers. We tried lots of promotions and it hasn't worked out. We are sorry to leave."Valentina opened in Chiswick in October 2014 on the former Villagio site.
The Chiswick branch was the seventh branch to open in the family-run business. The Zoccola and Arcari families are the delicatessen and restaurant owners and operators. Both families have their roots in Sant'Elia Fiumerapido, a small village near Monte Cassino southeast of Rome.
Valentina was open for breakfast, lunch and dinner and had a deli counter as well as a wine list of 150 Italian wines. They also offered a catering service and home delivery via Deliveroo.
September 28, 2017
