Multi-Award Winning Italian Restaurant
It is with delight we can announce that Punto Italian Kitchen is now a multi-award...
Read blog postAward Winning Italian Restaurant
It’s a dream of any restaurant owner or proprietor to be able to say, “we have an award winning Italian restaurant”… Well, perhaps not the Italian bit, but in our case this is absolutely true.
While awards aren’t a necessity, it’s a fine acknowledgement that all of the hard work and persistence has paid off. Since opening in November 2021 the team have worked tirelessly to produce authentic fresh handmade egg pasta and our 72 hour aged double malted pizza dough, along with a supporting cast of freshly made antipasti, dolci, gelato & sorbetto.
Being recognised by Tripadvisor as a 2023 ‘Traveler’s Choice’ award winner for dining establishments is something the team have taken great pride in. The coveted award celebrates businesses that have consistently received great traveller reviews on Tripadvisor over the last 12 months, placing us with other winners among the 10% of all listings on TripAdvisor globally.
Damiano Rea, our co-founder and one of the directors of Punto Italian Kitchen says: “Heaton Road has gained the reputation as ‘the’ go-to destination for great food and drink in the North East. We have an excellent local butcher, Block & Bottle, and two new bars, House Bar and Flight Bar. On top of this, two of the top five restaurants in our city on Tripadvisor, Punto Italian Kitchen & Boquerones, are only one block apart on Heaton Road. We’re proud to be part of a community of food excellence.”
Building on this recent success, we have decided now is the perfect time to work with Newcastle College, recruiting an apprentice commis chef. The new recruit, Amy, joins the team this week eager to kickstart her career in catering and hospitality.
Head Chef Nathan Short (Right) with Apprentice Amy Hepburn (Left)
A college education is becoming a rarity in the hospitality industry with many chefs learning ‘on the job’ in corporate kitchens, where broad knowledge and creativity aren’t always highly valued. We make all of our finished products in house, from scratch with fresh ingredients, including handmade pasta, sourdough pizza and even our own desserts, gelato and sorbets. We’re a family-owned business that value creativity and encourage our team to broaden their skill set.
Working with Newcastle College is a great way to bring in fresh talent and share our skills with the backup and grounding of an excellent well-established course.
Craig Cowan, head of hospitality at Newcastle College adds: “Newcastle College prides itself on working in partnership with industry to develop talent for our region, and our hospitality department is no exception.
We’re thrilled to hear of Punto Italian Kitchen’s recent success and to welcome them as a valued partner to deliver our Commis Chef apprenticeship. Apprenticeships are a fantastic way for businesses to invest in their workforce and ensure they have the skills and experience they will need to succeed.
We’re looking forward to working closely with Punto and continuing to support the North East’s thriving restaurant scene”
It’s a delight to have Amy join the team at Punto and we’re sure we’ll be seeing some great things from her in the coming months and years.
Click here for our recent write up in the Newcastle Chronicle
Zeno Meynell-Rea – Operations Director & Co-Founder – Punto Italian Kitchen