Meet Chef Pat Pascarella

Monday, January 31, 2022

Garnish & Gather has partnered with Chef Pat Pascarella for a Valentine's Day takeover! Because nothing says 'I love you' quite like Italian food. Transform your kitchen into some of Atlanta's most beloved restaurants with meal kits inspired by three of his restaurants: The White Bull's Spaghetti, featuring Chef Pat's handmade pasta; Grana's White Pizza, featuring his signature pizza dough; and Bastone's Formaggi e Salumi, featuring his house mozzarella. Order here for delivery on 2/13 & 2/14.

We asked Chef Pat a few questions–keep reading to learn more about him, his restaurants, and his cooking style!

How did you first get into the food world?

I was a dishwasher for a family I grew up with and then one day was asked to cook and it's been history ever since.

Who/what have been your biggest influences when it comes to cooking?

My biggest influences are my staff. We bounce a ton of ideas off each other every day and then end up creating some pretty amazing dishes.

Describe your cooking style in one sentence.

Simple but focused.

Tell us about your restaurants! You have quite a few in the line up now!

The White Bull is my modern farm-to-table Italian restaurant in Decatur with emphasis on vegetables, pasta and cocktails.

Grana is the restaurant I built to show respect to the women in my life. It's a southern Italian restaurant focusing on Neapolitan pizzas and pasta.

Bastone is coming next and it's a mozzarella bar with also a ton of focus on pasta, but nothing like you've seen before. And lots of attention to wine.

Alici is opening this summer and it's an Amalfi Coast-inspired oyster bar with very inventive cocktails and big emphasis on Italian frizzante (slightly effervescent wine).

Then later on is another Grana at the Perimeter.

What’s your number one piece of advice for home cooks?

Screw the recipes. Taste everything and keep tasting 'til it tastes good.

Do you have any suggestions for drink pairings with any of your meal kits?

What grows together goes together. So for meats and cheeses I love lambrusco (an Italian sparkling red). For pizza my go to is aglianico (a full bodied Italian red), and for pasta always falanghina (a dry Italian white).