Finnelli's is ready for your business!

I was a little worried that moving would get rid of the "quaintness." I went the other night and it was fabulous. You forget that you are in Greenville!

From the Daily Reflector:

Finelli's Cafe has opened in its dramatic new home at 511 Red Banks Road, but owner David Finelli said some things remain the same.

"It's like we took the restaurant and just moved it across town, back to where we started," said Finelli, a former partner in Stacatto's, the restaurant that last occupied the space in Lynndale Shoppes.

The menu, at least initially, features exactly the same Italian dishes Finelli has been serving successfully for the past nine years at his recently shuttered Finelli's Café on Fifth Street. The food is prepared by the same chefs, including Finelli (albeit with a bit more space in the new kitchen for them to move around in). Finelli's wife Becky and general manager Jessica Rackley still run the dining room and bar. And the same wait staff has relocated to the new restaurant, with some new employees added to the mix.

So what's different? The location.

The renovated space the restaurant occupies has been transformed into three rooms that echo the Roman Empire in the manner of Las Vegas' Caesar's Palace, Finelli says. Greenville artist Jan Paysour created a dramatic backdrop for dining, with her elaborate Italian art-inspired murals and faux-stone walls.

Diners pass through the outdoor dining area and walk through the front door into a circular space with a granite bar and seating, dubbed "The Forum" by Finelli. Carved fountains accent the walls, which are adorned with Paysour's paintings of sculptures and scenes reminiscent of ancient Roman art and artifacts. Look up to view her painting of colorful Sistine Chapel-style angels surrounding the chandelier. Crowning the bar is the Finelli coat of arms. On either side of the bar are large, glass-enclosed wine cabinets, which divide the bar from the dining room and lounge.

"The Colosseum" lounge, to the right of the bar area, features a bar, padded chairs, bar stools and tables. Busts and sculptures surround the room, and a 10-foot, high-definition television drops down out of the ceiling for watching sporting events.

To the left of the bar area is the dining room, with seating for 60 people at tables. "It's an intimate and small dining room like the one on Fifth Street," Finelli said. "I wanted it to be like a romantic Italian dinner café." White columns surround the entrance to the dining room, and Paysour covered the walls with a warm orange to replicate terra cotta plaster.

The patio, with its new landscaping and tables, brings seating up to 180 for the entire restaurant.

The menu features Italian specialties served by Finelli's grandmother, whose picture graces the cover of the menu.

Appetizers include gnocchi with rose sauce ($8.95), crab dip with pita points ($9.95) and fried calamari ($9.95). Specialty salads include garden ($5.50), spinach ($8.50) and grilled seafood ($12.50). The sandwich menu features meatball Parmesan ($8.50), crab cake ($12.50) and grilled salmon ($12.50).

The specialty pastas, served with a garden salad and garlic bread, include baked penne ($10.95), spinach manicotti ($12.95), meat lasagna ($12.95) and linguine with clams ($15.95). Diners may create their own pasta dish for $10.95. An 8-inch pizza with three toppings, served with a salad, is $10.95.

Other entrees include beef ($24.95 for a 12-ounce filet mignon), pork ($18.95 for Pork Milanese), veal ($8.95 for Veal Picatta), chicken ($14.95 for Chicken Pesto), and seafood ($18.95 for grilled salmon).

Finelli said he plans to add lunch service, late night hours and catering, and possibly make some changes to the menu as well.

"We wanted to have a smooth transition, and grow into this place," he said.