Maddalena's: Authentic Italian Eats in Downtown Kent

Each time the menu is adjusted at Maddalena’s Italian Ristorante in downtown Kent — every three months — staff members gather in the cozy 52-seat dining room to try new dishes. In July, that meant sharing bites of colorful caprese salad accented with sea salt and olive oil, as well as a dish with Italian sausage and carefully cooked mussels.

“I usually cry by the end of this,” says co-owner Mandy Yannucci, taking a bite of Insalata Mista, freshly prepared by co-owner and executive chef Emily Hansford.

Yannucci’s father was born in Sicily — the dishes conjure childhood memories.

“I grew up in a very, very ethnic household,” she says. “My grandmother used to make some dishes that really were Sicilian street food, and Emily has found and made some recipes that I would have as a child that literally bring tears to my eyes. It’s so nostalgic.”

Opened on July 1, 2025, Maddalena’s provides an experience that’s akin to stepping into an elevated version of a nonna’s kitchen. Meals are served on charmingly mismatched dishware, and photos of the co-owners’ family members hang in gold frames on the wall — including a picture of the restaurant’s namesake, Yannucci’s nonna, Maddalena. Even the green velvet barstools harken back to a green velvet couch in Maddalena’s home.

“I love dealing with our guests, especially first-time guests. I love to see their reaction to not only the aesthetic of the restaurant, but then when they get to try the food,” Yannucci says. “One thing that I hear consistently is that Kent needed a restaurant like ours for years.”

The idea for the restaurant — which serves antipasti, pizza, pasta and more for dinner, as well as antipasti, pizza and sandwiches for lunch — first came about over a lunch meeting three years ago. With almost 30 years of cooking experience, Hansford asked Yannucci if she would want to open an Italian restaurant together.

“I love the stress and the adrenaline of cooking, and I also love the constant research,” Hansford says. “It’s just a constant learning, growing experience for me.”

Maddalena’s dishes out genuine Italian eats, including wood-fired pizza from a visible oven.

“You get more flavor from the wood burning. You get some of that smoky flavor. And everything’s scratch made,” Yannucci says.

Order the beef, pork and pancetta meatballs, a menu staple. Chicken stock is reduced down until it’s in a gelatin form and then added in, along with cheese and caramelized onions and garlic.

“People come for the meatballs because they are so delicious,” Yannucci attests. “The sauce is amazing.”

Another enduring menu item is the margherita pizza, crafted using dough made daily, fresh mozzarella, tomato passata, fresh basil and garlic slices. New to the menu as of July is the Rigatoni Alla Zozzona.

“It is basically a hodgepodge of all the classic … Roman Italian pasta sauces,” says Hansford. “There is pancetta in there, there is hot Italian sausage, and then there’s a carbonara sauce that’s an egg yolk with Parmesan cheese in it. Very rich, a little spicy.”

Try the mussels — about a pound of mussels with mild Italian sausage, braised cherry tomatoes, basil, parsley, garlic, onions, white wine and butter.

“This is so summery, fresh and light.” says Yannucci.

Also featuring mussels, as well as caramelized lemon, shrimp, chili flakes and arugula, is the Spaghetti Al Limone. Savor it with the with the Sicilian 77 cocktail — limoncello, prosecco, fresh basil and lemon sorbetto. Yannucci makes the limoncello from scratch.

Pair the Orecchiette Con Salsiccia, made with Italian sausage, roasted cherry tomatoes, basil pesto, pine nuts and burrata, with the Italian mule — a mix of limoncello, Campari, fresh lemon juice and ginger beer. Save room for scratch-made gelato in flavors like chocolate and vanilla, as well as rotating seasonal flavors such as blueberry cheesecake, hazelnut and pistachio.

“People definitely enjoy eating as they’re celebrating and having conversation,” says Yannucci. “With the Italian culture, for sure, eating is a big part of the culture … family time, you get together, whether it’s Sunday dinner or during the week, it’s time to share your day, talk, celebrate through food.”

Yannucci enjoys sharing her roots through the restaurant.

“All the pride that it brings me to be able to talk about the fact that my father was born in Sicily, and his family, they were immigrants here, that I’m first-generation American,” she says. “That’s the biggest thing for me — the pride that I have in my heritage.”

252 N. Water St., Kent, 330-593-5010, maddalenaskent.com