Italian cuisine is the world’s most famous, yet most misunderstood. According to Sicilian-born Daniele Puleo, who loves tradition:
Daniele and his wife, Christina, live in Kessler Park and own and operate Cibo Divino Marketplace, a spot where the quality of the menu is more important than the restaurant’s relaxed, family-friendly atmosphere. Founding their restaurant at Sylvan 30 in West Dallas, this “workaholic” couple has been bringing Italian cuisine to our neighborhood for nearly a decade.
“Everyone thinks they know Italian food, but there’s more to it than that. It’s not just the (same) 10 recipes,” Daniele says. “I’m doing this because I want people to know more about authentic Italian cuisine.”
Daniele has lived in the United States longer than she has lived in Italy. He immigrated in his 22nd year, and after bouncing around Scottsdale and Los Angeles, arrived in Dallas and started Sicilian-style restaurants, Daniele Osteria and Brix’s Pizza & Wine. Both have Sicilian influences and are highly regarded in his dining scene.
Ten years ago, he sold both stores and opened Cibo Divino. Cibo was a teaching opportunity for him.
In the market area, customers will find Italian pasta brand Alberto Longo Pasta. You’ve probably never heard of it, as Cibo Divino is the only company in the country that sells this brand. Alberto is a good friend of Daniele and Cristina and they also sell his wine. For customers who need a sauce to go with their pasta, Cibo Divino sells special recipes by the jar, created and packaged by Daniele himself.
Bars sell bottles of wine at market prices rather than restaurant markups to encourage access. Daniele knows many of the winemakers personally and loves talking about each bottle with our customers.
“I always try to introduce something special because I want to pose a question to the customer that says, ‘I’ve never seen this before.’ It gives me an opportunity to talk,” he says. says.
Many of Cibo Divino’s recipes have been passed down through Daniele’s family. They’re more than personal to him, and Christina says no trip to Italy ends without them arguing over who knows more recipes.
“He and his mother talk on the phone every day, and they mostly talk about food,” Christina says.
Christina is a Texas native with a background in business banking, but when Cibo opened she naturally moved into the “behind the scenes” side of the restaurant and was happy to let Danielle be the “rock star” in the kitchen.
The menu changes seasonally, but it’s always full of familiar favorites such as oven-baked Margherita pizza imported from Italy, rigatoni with Bolognese sauce, and Capri panini, as well as di Fica pizza topped with Gorgonzola cheese. More experimental dishes are also an option. , dried figs, hot honey.
When Daniele is out of town, Christina is the person he trusts to source ingredients that meet his high standards of freshness.
“I’m standing there (in the market) with chefs and cooks and restaurant people, and I’m like, ‘I want you to pull out all the branzinos and let me look at them. Because if it’s cloudy,… “Danielle would say no,” she says.
But sourcing fresh ingredients is one of Daniele’s biggest rules in the kitchen. If you say, “Please buy good ingredients (ingredients),” the dish will be ready.
He claims that simply adding or subtracting ingredients from a recipe can completely transform a dish.
“I’m not trying to reinvent the wheel. I think if you change the ingredients, you also need to change the name[of the dish],” says Daniele. “If you call carbonara carbonara, you have to follow the recipe. If you just add fish or chicken, it’s not carbonara anymore.”
After 10 years at Cibo Divino and 20 years in Dallas, Danielle is still not tired of the kitchen. When he is done running the kitchen, he goes home and cooks for himself and Christina.
“When I told him I was going to start cooking more this year, he was like, ‘Why?'” Christina says. “And I thought, ‘That’s right.'”
Daniele returns to her home country every year to visit her family and source food. He and Christina also lead group trips to Italy to further educate people about the region’s food and wine.
But when he’s in the U.S., his cooking keeps him connected to Italy and brings him comfort.
In his experience, Italians become “more Italian” once they leave the country.
“When you live outside of Italy, you start to care about Italy more,” he says. “It’s also a sense of security. It’s a sense of knowing that you’ll never forget where you came from.”