Today we’d like to introduce you to Roni Davis.
Roni, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
Josh and I used to work in a restaurant together for a while and became really close friends. We would talk and daydream on the line about when he would open his own concept and what that would look like. Josh had left the restaurant and the ball started rolling on Orso, which was initially supposed to be a dine in casual fine dining establishment. Then COVID happened and obviously everything kind of came to a halt. He called me a week later bouncing ideas about some kind of food venture we could take on and then he called me again a few days later saying we should just make Orso happen. So that’s what we did, just the two of us would cook all day long in his tiny kitchen (don’t tell anyone) and deliver all over Los Angeles. Orso has grown into a much more sophisticated operation after growing and much trial and error. We are super proud of our two-person operation and even more excited about the fact that we kind of created the job we have always wanted. It’s a 24/7 job where we both wear many hats we have never worn before. We re constantly learning about the business still but it’s so worth it to have the chance to be creative and get to connect on a much more personal level with the people who eat our food. It also doesn’t hurt that I get to spend all day hanging out with one of my best friends.
Has it been a smooth road?
Lucky for us, we didn’t really have to modify our business model because of COVID, our business model was born to work around COVID. But no, of course it hasn’t all been easy, we are constantly learning from feedback and trial and error about what packaging works, how well things travel, etc. It’s also really hard to tell what the future of food is right now in this climate and that is something we are always talking about and trying to come up with ideas to be able to ebb and flow with the change. Trying to stay relevant as things slowly start to open up post quarantine is always on our mind considering we are strictly a delivery business right now. I think we are doing our best though and there will be more trials and we will tackle them as they come.
We’d love to hear more about your business.
Orso Pasta specialized in fresh hand-rolled pasta and sauces. We hand stretch the dough the way Nonna’s in Italy have for many years and while its a much more labor-intensive process that rolling dough through a machine, we agree it really creates a superior product that has a lot of life and personality. It also so fun to do!! I highly recommend trying it if you ever have the chance because you learn so much more about the environment you are cooking in and the ingredients you are cooking with when you have your hands on it and are reputedly manipulating it. I’ve learned so much more about cooking when I learned to roll pasta and I thought I already knew a lot. Gosh, I am so proud of our gluten-free pasta options, living in Los Angeles a good chance of people don’t eat gluten (including Josh’s Fiancee) so it was really important for us to find a way to make a really good gluten-free that felt like a normal pasta eating experience and like you weren’t missing out on anything. We really did that after MUCH trial and error and it has honestly become one of my favorite pastas we have.
Is our city a good place to do what you do?
There are about 4 million people in Los Angeles who all need to eat if we can just reach them so I think it’s a great place to start a business. We found a community of a lot of other small business owners who have given us tips and tricks and told us about their struggles and successes along the way. I do believe its a place where a small business can really thrive with the right tools.
Contact Info:
- Address: 627 S Santa Fe Ave
Los Angeles, CA 90021 - Website: orsopasta.com
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: @Orsopasta
- Facebook: @Orsopasta
Image Credit:
Kristian Punturere
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