Natalie Renda-Lorant, maître d' at Calabrese Italian Restaurant in Southlake, thinks big, and when she has a dream, she pursues it with a passion.
Before getting into the hospitality industry, she graduated from UT Austin with a degree in biology, then studied at Parker Chiropractic College and worked for a while in her father Oscar’s business. The business, Oscar Renda Contracting, which is today part of Southland Construction, provides heavy utility construction, building bridges, marine and water pipeline projects and managing other engineering ventures.
What Natalie ultimately wanted to do, though, was move into the hospitality business.
“It seemed fun and exciting,” she says. “My dad was born in Italy, and our family has always maintained our roots, taking trips to Europe since I was a child. I’ve always been drawn to the European style and the hospitality industry there.”
Natalie wanted to attend the luxury goods and services program at the International University of Monaco, but to apply, she needed practical experience. So she interned with family friends in Dallas, the Colombo family, who were major players in the local restaurant scene, owning several well-known dining establishments at the time, including Sfuzzi’s on McKinney Avenue, Trece, Villa O and The Club.
“I learned everything from the Colombos. I was part of the opening at Villa O, Trece and The Club, from construction to grand opening to daily operations of the business,” Natalie says.
This hands-on experience gave Natalie the credentials to enroll in Monaco’s program of study. When she returned to Texas, she was ready to pitch an exciting idea to her father. It was daunting, thinking of how she would suggest that they start a restaurant together. She was living in Westlake, and her dream was to build a place in Southlake that her family and others from the local community could enjoy.
“It was a hard sell getting my dad onboard,” she recalls. “His first answer was no, but I just kept going.”
The project would involve a substantial investment and was something Natalie’s family had never done before. But she had already envisioned how the restaurant would look and how the service and overall experience would make customers feel like family. She wanted to develop an upscale place where everyone would feel welcomed and invited, as well as a safe environment for women to feel comfortable if they just wanted to come and sit at the bar.
When Natalie finally convinced her father – a “huge foodie,” and a lover of Southern Italian cooking, as she describes him - they started out in a big way, purchasing the land and building the restaurant from scratch. She first proposed the idea to her dad in 2010, and Calabrese celebrated its grand opening in 2012.
At first it was just Natalie and Oscar. An operational partner was temporarily onboard, and Chef Luciano Salvadore came in at the beginning and still heads the kitchen to this day. He had previously made a name for himself as chef at the Dallas Nicola’s restaurant and Arcodoro & Pomodoro in the Crescent Hotel.
Great management and staff then joined the team, including Shawn Horne, director of leisure and good times, and Brian Launius, general manager. Oscar comes in several times a week but is still involved full time in his other business.
Natalie’s inspiration for the look and feel of Calabrese was to create a light and airy, uber cool place to dine or have a drink, like restaurants found in Dallas’ Highland Park Village. The most enjoyable part of her job, she says, is getting to know customers, and seeing happy people enjoying themselves and connecting with other patrons as they make new friends. The Calabrese restaurant family is fortunate to have a lot of regular customers that they also call friends.
Most days of the week, you’ll find Natalie greeting customers and making guests feel welcome during lunch and the mid-afternoon hours. She says she loves it, and it’s exactly what she dreamed of.
Calabrese is very involved in supporting local charities, which is another aspect of the business that Natalie enjoys.
For women who might be considering a business idea, Natalie encourages them to “just go for it.”
“The only person who really needs to believe in you is yourself. If you have a dream – even if it takes years to get there – don’t give up, because there is always a way,” she advises.
"If you have a dream, don't give up!"