What to order at Corso Italia Italian Restaurant in Scottsdale

Corso Italia, a new Italian restaurant and market, has opened in a 5,000-square-foot space formerly occupied by Gastrome in Scottsdale.

Chef and owner Corrado La Macchia’s goal was to open a small version of Eataly, a store founded in Turin in 2002 by Oscar Farinetti as a place where people could eat, shop and learn about Italian food and ingredients . The concept began expanding internationally in 2007.

On a recent visit, there was a lot of activity behind the cheese and sausage counter at the back of the market. La Macchia hand-formed orecchiette pasta (orecchiette translates to “little ear,” a nod to the shape of the pasta). He cut off a piece of dough with a kitchen scraper, covered the rest with plastic wrap, divided the dough into two pieces and rolled each piece into a long log. He then cut out small circles with a table knife, flattened them, and pressed them against his thumb to create the characteristic indentation.