photos and words by Shab Ferdowsi
It’s been about a month since Capri Club opened in Eagle Rock and the hype hasn’t spritzed out.
On this Wednesday night, I arrived just after they opened their doors at 4pm. It was quieter than I had expected from what I had been hearing, but I took advantage of the moment to find my footing. I found my corners in the tiny kitchen where I could be a fly on the wall, and introduced myself to the bartenders.
“Just pretend I’m not here,” I told everyone.
The first couple hours were smooth, so smooth that the kitchen team led by chef Francesco Allegro started prepping for the rest of the weekend, which these days is bound to get crazy.
Those first two hours were breezy but at 6 pm the vibe instantly changed and full trays of prosciutto and arancini began zipping out of the kitchen. As front of house began to fill up, back of house’s hands went further into the fryer, faster on the dishwasher and deeper in the flow.
Tables filled with the entire aperitivo menu and martinis piled in and out. The sidewalk patio stretched two storefronts down. Spritzes were ordered in handfuls.
As I searched for moments to capture I felt the buzz of the neighborhood— regulars sitting at the bar with a book, young parents walking up with strollers, a group of friends playing cards outside.
For a moment I feel like if I stepped outside I would find myself in a bustling piazza in Bari or Florence, and that fleeting but lively feeling is what I hoped to capture that night.
