Halal Italian Restaurant Porta Porta To Close After 33 Years; Family Open To Selling Biz

From cooking classes to a 33-year-old restaurant

Rozi founded the restaurant with her late husband, Antonino Laino, or Nino, who died of lung cancer in 2012. The establishment began with halal Italian cooking classes and later evolved into a small kitchen along Upper Changi Road. 

Now located in Bedok, Porta Porta – which means "door to door" in Italian – is known for its cosy and home-like ambience and art-filled space. It serves primarily Italian cuisine, with menu highlights including tagliatelle in squid ink sauce, meat lasagna, and tiramisu dessert. 

Why it’s closing

Speaking to CNA Lifestyle, the couple's son, Danesh Laino, said the decision to close was primarily driven by his mother's wish to retire.

"My mum wants to retire, and I already have a career outside of F&B," the 37-year-old fintech entrepreneur said. "We want to keep things running, but it's not easy, and my mum is at the age for retirement."

Family open to someone taking over the business

Danesh said the family had been considering the closure for some time and that arrangements would be made to support the restaurant's employees.

While Porta Porta has received offers to operate out of other kitchens and premises, the family has no plans to relocate the restaurant. However, they remain open to someone taking over the business.

"If someone asks to buy over or take over, then we will happily help them continue my father and mother's legacy," Danesh said. "If not, then it's a chapter we plan on closing."

More than just a family business

For Danesh, who grew up alongside the restaurant and described it as his first job, Porta Porta has always been more than a family business.

"The restaurant kept the family close," he said, recalling evenings when his father would play the guitar and his mother would sing for diners, sometimes with customers joining in. "We've made so many wonderful friends over the years through the restaurant."

Rozi said she and Nino had opened Porta Porta with the hope of sharing the warmth of Italian family dining in Singapore.

"Nino and I opened this restaurant because we wanted to bring Italian homely traditions to Singapore, sharing food together as a family at the dinner table, laughing and filling our bellies," she wrote on Instagram.

She also thanked customers who had supported the restaurant over the decades, including families who had returned across three generations.

"You've all become family to us," she wrote. "We hope that from now till the last day of opening, you'll come by for one last time as we close this chapter for good."

Porta Porta is located at No. 32 Jln Pari Burong, S488698. More info via Instagram & website.

Source: CNA/iz

The original version of this story first appeared in CNA Lifestyle.

For more CNA Lifestyle stories, visit https://www.cnalifestyle.com.