Geppetto’s Log - Stardate 042922.1

Out of This World - Tuscany Meets Sicily

Geppetto’s meatballs are delicious. A recent five star Google review backs me up on this.

When Roger and I came onboard in 2017 Geppetto’s meatballs came from a purveyor of foods. They were shipped frozen, ready to heat and eat!

One weekend evening, early in ownership, there was a hubbub in the kitchen. Murmuring translated revealed a shortage of meatballs and concern that the purveyor would not be back to bring more for days.

Having never had the opportunity or desire to try the meatballs at Geppetto’s… I did that night. One bite said it all. Blech!

The sauce was delicious but I knew immediately that which was called a “meatball” was not. What I experienced was more like a spongy nugget made, I’m pretty sure, with mostly fillers, some spices and perhaps a bit beef. Blech!

I thought. Why can’t we make our own meatballs?

The next morning I called my friend, Kelly, who lives outside Boston. I told her about our meatball situation and begged for help with her Sicilian grandmothers recipe.

Kelly, I said. A little bit of this and a little bit of that has been fine at home… but now I need to multiply your family recipe by 40 and have the ability to offer these meatballs daily.

After my friend and I did some math… Roger and I dove right in and made our first batch.

Four hundred and twenty five Geppetto’s meatballs were born that day. I soon realized they could easily be made with gluten free breadcrumbs with no change in food quality. Suddenly… we not only had yummy house made meatballs to offer… but a really awesome gluten free option too!

True… it’s way more work than receiving frozen goods and heating… but you sure can taste the love. Sometimes the extra mile makes all the difference.

Also true is the fact that any good Italian family has their very own… “best meatball recipe in all the world!” I respect that completely. My heritage is not at all Italian… I am French and Irish, Czech, Bohemian, Swedish and Dutch. I had to reach east to Massachusetts for the recipe for the best meatball I’d ever tasted. The generosity of my friend brought her grandmother’s recipe to the Willamette Valley… all they way from Sicily. Geppetto’s Tuscany met Sicily by way of Salem.

Thank you, Will, for your review!

“The meatball was on point it was out of this world.”
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Dine in or call for #TakeOutDelivery 503.378.1271. We are still closed Tuesdays… currently building the team to get back to seven days a week!