Massive All Day Italian Emporium Vespaio Nears Its Bunker Hill Debut

Here’s your first under construction look at what will become downtown’s Vespaio. One of the spring’s most anticipated openings, the gigantic 5,500 sq. foot eatery sits at the base of luxury tower The Emerson, right in the heart of Bunker Hill, and has been in the works since last year.

With all that space, chef Agostino Sciandri (of West Hollywood’s Ago fame) has plans for a wood-fired oven, a rotisserie, a take-out counter, a four-sided bar and maybe even a few cheese displays. The menu itself will of course focus on Sciandri’s Italian leanings, with a backbone of organic produce.

The timing for the restaurant couldn’t be better, either. Aimed at becoming Bunker Hill’s swanky, airy answer to Bottega Louie, the plan is to run service for all three meals, working breads and pastries in the morning and transitioning to a more classically casual dinner spot later in the evening. With the arrival of the Broad Museum in the near future, betting big on a steady stream of foot traffic into the restaurant sure seems like the way to go.

Though there are no firm dates for the arrival of Vespaio, these construction photos show that things are progressing along nicely, which means an opening by mid to late May is certainly likely.