Sorellina Italian Kitchen & Wine Bar

The story

Crafted with passion, served with love

The Story Behind the Name

Sorellina means "little sister" in Italian, and that warmth is built into everything about this Washington Street restaurant. Owner and Certified Sommelier Gabi Lombardi created it as a tribute to her Italian heritage and the family table she grew up around — a place where love, food, and wine were inseparable. That founding spirit shapes the atmosphere today: convivial, generous, and genuinely social.

The Space

The interior pairs rustic charm with contemporary touches, anchored by an original 25-foot bar dating to the 1930s. It's a room that invites lingering, whether you're settling in for a full dinner or pulling up a stool for the bar's aperitivo hour — a nod to the Milanese tradition of gathering over light cocktails and snacks before the meal properly begins. On Mondays all night and Tuesday through Friday from 4 to 6 p.m., the bar offers classic Negronis, Spritzes, select Italian wines, and half-portions of house-made pasta.

Italian Cooking with a Farm-to-Table Commitment

The menu is seasonally driven and designed for sharing. Sorellina's kitchen makes all of its pasta, bread, pastries, and gelato in house every day, working with locally sourced ingredients that change as the seasons do. The approach — creativity balanced with simplicity, modern twists on classic Italian dishes — keeps the cooking rooted while staying alive. Gluten-free pasta is available on request.

A Wine List Worth the Recognition

The exclusively Italian wine list is the other pillar of the restaurant. With more than 100 bottle selections spanning indigenous varietals and notable producers from nearly every winemaking region in Italy, it reflects Lombardi's background as a sommelier as much as her identity as an Italian. Wine Spectator has recognized the list with its Award of Excellence for seven consecutive years — a consistency that speaks to genuine curatorial depth rather than a one-time achievement.

More Than Dinner

Beyond the dining room, Sorellina offers curated wine tastings — from Somm Selections to Vintners Collections to food-and-wine pairing experiences — along with private event hosting and catering. It's a full-service Italian kitchen that scales from an intimate weeknight table to a larger celebration without losing the warmth that defines it.