Vegan options the next pivot for Sapore.

No denying 2020 has been a year of change and more change for many businesses and for one in particular, innovation and pivots is continuously top of mind.

Like many businesses in the downtown area, Sapore Italiano continuously adapted through the pandemic. First to launch barriers in between tables, they were featured in local news outlets for their innovative hacks to keep their customers safe. Now with the only seats in the house located outside, Sapore has pivoted once again.

In order to cater to a wider audience Sapore launched a vegan menu, full of delicious remakes that are favorites on their regular menu. The new menu expands Sapore’s audience bringing in new potential customers and giving returning customers a fresh take on the classic Italian cuisine.

Meat lovers have no fear, their classic menu is still here to stay and ever changing as the chefs incorporate new options and specials into their offerings. A favorite, according to the owner Elio, is the Gnocchi Gorgonzola. We’ll come back to that in a moment.

As the pandemic rages on to the end of the year, restaurants in the downtown Burlingame area have been forced to adapt quickly. When the shut down first happened, Sapore was featured in news outlets for quickly putting in handmade partitions to make their customers feel safe while dining in-side.

As the pandemic progressed, they built two outdoor patios to accommodate outdoor seating and as San Mateo county heads into another shelter-in-place order, they’ve innovated the best way they can, through their menu! Their menu now not only serves classic favorites but has expanded to incorporate a vegan menu which Elio insists on using the highest quality vegan ingredients available. We tried their vegan pesto pizza and we promise, it’s so good you can’t even tell it’s vegan cheese. You can find this menu on their website here.

Vegan mushroom polenta from Sapore’s website.

So back to the famous gnocchi that’s a favorite for locals! Much like all their pasta options, their gnocchi is handmade fresh daily. The key to delicious gnocchi, according to Elio, is to not over process the dough. They also keep their ingredients, clean and simple! Click the button in the above video to check out the gnocchi making process!