Lou Umberto's Italian Kitchen is adding a second location in Pawtuxet Village while keeping its Knightsville location open, taking over the storefront at 2170 Broad Street that most recently housed Crepe Corner. The Cranston-based Italian market and kitchen says its original Cranston Street location will stay open even as the new spot takes shape, with a projected opening sometime in 2027.
As reported by WJAR, the business announced the expansion with a message promising continuity rather than reinvention: “New space. New chapter. The same food and hospitality you know and love.” The restaurant also said it is bringing on Paul Voigt as a partner for the new location, and encouraged customers to follow its social media accounts and join its email list for updates, though no firm opening date has been announced. Voigt is a familiar name in Rhode Island hospitality, having co-founded PJ's Pub in Cranston in 2008 and later expanded the business into Johnston in 2013, according to CheckOutRI.com. He previously worked in Providence restaurant and catering operations before launching his own pub, giving the Lou Umberto's team an operator with deep roots in the local dining scene.
From a Johnson & Wales Kitchen to a Knightsville Staple
Lou Umberto opened his original kitchen and market at 1606 Cranston Street in 2017, shortly after graduating from Johnson & Wales University with degrees in culinary arts and food service entrepreneurship, per Lou Umberto's Italian Kitchen. The business traces its scratch-made traditional recipes to family roots in Cerreto Sannita, Italy. Cranston's municipal records show the city's Safety Services and Licenses Committee renewed a Class BVL liquor license for the Cranston Street location in November 2021, confirming a licensing history that stretches back years at the original site.
That flagship sits in a stretch of Knightsville that has seen significant public investment in recent years. The Cranston Street corridor underwent a multi-million dollar municipal revitalization that included streetscape paving, new lighting, and sidewalk bump-outs designed for outdoor dining, according to the city's reporting on the project. The same push also brought fountain restorations and upgrades to Itri Park to the neighborhood.
Italian-American Heritage Runs Deep in the Neighborhood
Knightsville has long served as a center of Italian-American heritage in Rhode Island, a legacy rooted in 19th- and 20th-century Italian immigration. The neighborhood's signature tradition, St. Mary's Feast, marked its 121st annual run this past July, a milestone chronicled by writer Dave Hackett. That cultural backdrop helped cement the original Lou Umberto's as a neighborhood fixture, one with enough visibility to draw federal attention: U.S. Representative Seth Magaziner and then-U.S. Small Business Administration Administrator Isabel Guzman made an official visit to the restaurant in September 2023 to spotlight federal small business resources available to Rhode Island owners.
A Storefront With a Revolving Door of Local Concepts
The new location's address carries its own history. The previous tenant, Crepe Corner, permanently closed on July 27, 2026, after nearly a decade in business, with its owners stepping back to focus on family during a personal health battle, according to the Steven Miller Group. Crepe Corner had operated as a daytime creperie that transformed into a cocktail lounge called Soiree Belge after dark.
Before Crepe Corner, 2170 Broad Street had already cycled through other local food and beverage concepts over roughly two decades, including Schastea and the original Elephant Room, the Steven Miller Group's account notes. That turnover reflects less instability than continuity, with the address consistently functioning as a central gathering spot in the village.
Lou Umberto's move will take it from the Knightsville corridor it has called home since 2017 to Pawtuxet Village.
For now, the exact build-out timeline, any permit requirements tied to the Broad Street space, and whether the Pawtuxet Village location will mirror the Knightsville flagship's mix of prepared foods, market goods, and sit-down dining remain open questions as the 2027 opening approaches.
