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A Resolution of the City Commission designating the 300 block of Aragon Avenue as "Nino Pernetti Way" in honor of Caffe Abbracci owner Nino Pernetti.
(Sponsored by Mayor Lago)
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Pernetti was born in post-World War II Italy, in the tiny town of Campione, which was a 30-minute ride on his father’s bicycle from the nearest town. One of eight children, Pernetti lost his mother at age 3 when both contracted typhus. When Pernetti survived, doctors nicknamed him “cabrito,” little goat.
Pernetti discovered his interest in hospitality while working in a small bed-and-breakfast in the touristy town of Limone. He used the job to pay for three years of high school in a town eight miles away, before enrolling in hospitality school, where he found he preferred working the front of the house to the kitchen. He spent the next 15 years working in some of the top hotels in Europe, the Middle East and Latin America--learning new languages everywhere he went.
In 1987, Pernetti opened his first restaurant, Caffe Baci, in Coral Gables, a lively spot where people came to see and be seen. Two year later, Pernetti opened Caffe Abbracci just a few blocks away, he found guests preferred to dine wherever he was situated. Nino was the draw.
He soon realized he preferred the more intimate Abbracci and closed Baci to focus on giving his diners all of himself. Pernetti projected an air of discretion, personally and at his restaurant. He was an avid reader, and lover of knowledge, and spent countless evenings conversing warmly with his patrons in up to seven different languages. He was well-known and well-loved by the Coral Gables community and greater South Florida region, and many affluent, influential, and famous locals were regulars at Caffe Abbraci. In fact, on January 22, 2019, Nino Pernetti was awarded a Key to the City by Coral Gables Mayor Raul Valdeś-Fauli for his contributions to the culinary fabric of the City.
Pernetti contracted COVID-19 in December 2020, just days after a forthcoming vaccine was announced and struggled with the side effects of the virus for more than a year. He passed away from complications on May 31, 2022. Yet even in the hospital, he continued reading voraciously and sending texts to his managers at Caffe Abbracci when he couldn’t speak.
The Miami-Dade County Commission proclaimed March 14, 2022, Nino Pernetti Day, and presented a plaque to his daughters, Tatiana and Katerina, as well as his ex-wife Marlén Pernetti. Pernetti is survived by siblings Diego, Olivo and Lucia in Italy, and his daughters, Tatiana and Katerina, in Miami.
The City Commission wishes to recognize Nino Pernetti, the long-time business owner of Café Abbracci, by designating the 300 Block of Aragon Avenue as “Nino Pernetti Way.”