New Owner Is Refreshing DiFranco's, a Capitol Hill Fast-Casual Italian Staple

"Ironically, my first kitchen was an Italian kitchen, years ago. It was 3 Sons Italian Restaurant," says Dave King, who took over as the new owner of DiFranco's at 955 Lincoln Street in April.

King grew up in the Northside, and 3 Sons on West 44th Avenue was one of several red-sauce Italian joints run by the Saninno family, who sold the business in 2004. (Its new owners went on to open their own 3 Sons in Arvada.)

"I've been cheffing for over thirty years," notes King, whose résumé includes stints at Marlowe's, Black Angus, Baby Doe's and Blake Street Tavern. "I've definitely been around in this town. I've been fortunate to work with a lot of good chefs, and a lot of bad ones where I learned what not to do, as well. I've done a lot of steak and seafood. I've done just about everything, to tell you the truth." But he notes that he's gravitated toward hotels, because he likes the creativity of doing banquets.

His most recent role is executive chef at the Denver Airport Marriott Hotel at Gateway Park, a job he's continuing to do while also running DiFranco's, which was opened by Ryan DiFranco in 2012. When it debuted, DiFranco emphasized that "the emphasis is on local, fresh Italian food," he told Westword. "Denver needs a good local Italian deli and market. I want to be able to share my passion for great Italian food, coming from a large Italian family. I want to do it right, with local farmers, and celebrate good food with the city."
And he did just that for over a decade before deciding to sell the business. "Ryan did a great job here," King says. "Just imagine you take your car to get a tune-up. I'm here to turn it into a race car. And that's what I want to do here."

King's longtime sous chef encouraged him to look into buying his own place; he's a partner in DiFranco's. The rest of the small staff at the fast-casual joint are King's coworkers from the Mariott and family members, including his grandson and niece. "So it's still family-run, and we've all known each other for a long time and worked together," King notes.

While Difranco's was a turnkey operation, taking it over "was a lot more difficult than I thought, with all the licenses," King admits, crediting Michelle Palmquist, who formerly worked for the Breckenridge-Wynkoop group and now runs her own consulting business, Palmquist Professional Services, with helping him navigate the system.

Over the past three months, he's been slowly making small changes at the restaurant. "I'm trying to be true to the following — it's a big following," King says. "I see a lot of regulars come in here."
He's tweaked the marinara recipe, for example, adding garlic and more basil. Portions are now bigger, too. "Everybody, with prices going up on everything, they want value," King notes. He's filled the deli case with more items, including tiramisu and a gluten-free chocolate cake. There are gluten-free shells for the freshly filled cannoli, as well.

Pizza logs, a Chicago staple that consists of mozzarella and pepperoni in an egg roll wrapper, used to be shipped frozen to DiFranco's. King has swapped that for a fresh version made with breadcrumbs. He's also teamed up with local company La Mozzarella to bring in burrata straight from Italy, and is planning to offer a version with Palisade peaches once those are in season.

King's been adding specials, like a carbonara made with guanciale, and he plans to add other new items to the lineup, including seafood dishes using clams and shrimp. One thing that won't change, though, is the use of fresh pasta, which is displayed in the deli case.

The biggest addition to DiFranco's is lunch, which is now available from 10:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. The midday offerings are subs ($14-$17), including classics like meatball, chicken parm and the Mile High Hero — its take on an Italian, with ham, salami, pepperoni, capicola, provolone, tomato, arugula, onion, pepperoncini and red wine vinaigrette.
King was inspired by a YouTube video of a popular sandwich in Sicily to create the Sicilian, which is loaded with fennel salami, truffle salami, marinated grilled eggplant, arugula, artichoke spread and a creamy pecorino spread. He's also doing a riff on an Italian beef made with marinated skirt steak, roasted red peppers, Anaheim chiles, pepperoncini, onion, mozzarella and red sauce.

The lunch special is a throwback to 3 Sons. "I remembered they used to do these Italian omelets, and they served them with a side of spaghetti. I was looking online, and no one else is doing anything like that now," King says. So he began experimenting, and the result is the Bada Bing Omelet ($15) made with parmesan, provolone and red sauce that, yes, comes with spaghetti on the side and an option to add peppers and onions, meatball or Italian sausage that's sourced from Clyde's.
While it's on the major delivery apps, DiFranco's also offers online ordering for pickup and delivery via Square, something King hopes more guests will start using. He's also hoping to ramp up the catering business, as he and his team have extensive experience with large events from working at hotels.

But most important, he wants guests, "especially the people that have been coming here for years, to know that I'm not here to mess that up," King concludes. "I've been really lucky, and this is the cherry on top."

DiFranco's is located at 955 Lincoln Street and offers free parking in the garage connected to the restaurant. It is open from 10:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. For more information, visit difrancos.com.