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22 | January 16, 2020 | The lake forest leader DINING OUT
LakeForestLeaderDaily.com
Posted to LakeForestLeaderDaily.com 1 day ago
Visconti Cheese Market & Deli takes over for Caputo in Lake Forest
Peter Kaspari, Editor
Caputo Cheese Market
has been a fixture in
Lake Forest for years, offering
its famous cheese
and other Italian favorites
including sandwiches and
desserts.
Recently, the Caputo
family decided it wanted
to step away from the market
and focus more on the
production aspect of its
business. At the same time,
it didn’t want to close the
market, which has become
a popular local stop in
Lake Forest.
Fortunately, the family
knew just the man to take
over.
Local restaurateur Frank
Visconti has been in the
restaurant business ever
since he was a child, helping
out at his family’s restaurant,
the now-closed
Little Italy in Highwood.
He’s also a lifelong friend
of the Caputo family for
nearly 40 years.
“Nat (Caputo) came to
me and said, ‘Hey, Frank.
We really don’t want to
close this place down. We
really would like you to
take it over. Would you
like to talk about a deal?’”
Visconti recalled. “Me and
Nat Caputo sat down and
we struck a deal and we
decided to keep it going.”
The new business, which
has been renamed Visconti
Cheese Market & Deli, officially
opened on Jan. 16.
Although the business
has a new name, the new
owner said very little has
changed. As he put it, “We
want to keep the Caputo
tradition going.”
“All the Caputo products
are staying,” Visconti said.
“Everything is staying the
same.”
The only difference?
Visconti said the menu offerings
will be expanded.
“We’re just going to add
more,” he said. “We’re going
to add more dinners,
we’re going to add more
grab-and-go sandwiches,
more salads. We’re going
to increase the catering.
We love to do catering.”
Customers will also see
items that were once only
offered occasionally now
being offered all the time.
“Italian beef every day,”
he said. “We’re going to do
a meatball sub every day,
we’re going to do sausage
and peppers all day, every
day. Before, it was just every
once in awhile.”
Both items will be served
for lunch and dinner.
Additionally, Visconti
said he’ll be adding more
prepared meals, as well as
a second register, since the
checkout line can sometimes
get lengthy.
He also believes he’s improved
what he described
as “the flow” of the market.
“So when you walk in,
boom — there are all the
sandwiches, all the salads,”
he said. “We’re going to
make prepared, pre-made
cheese platters, if you and
another person want to
have a bottle of wine and a
little cheese grab-and-go.”
He also plans to take
dietary restrictions into account
with his menu additions.
“We’re going to get
some organic wines in
here, we’re going to get
some organic drinks,” Visconti
said. “There’s a lot of
people here who are vegan
and organic. We’re going
to try and increase on the
organic and vegan products.”
Visconti also wants to
help attract younger people
to his restaurant and make
An assortment of
Visconti’s Italian cookies
($8.99/pound).
it a place where they want
to come have a cup of coffee.
Additionally, he plans
on taking advantage of
the patio. Outdoor seating
will remain, but Visconti
said he’s thinking about
adding live music and
looking into potentially
hosting a block party or a
car show.
Something else that’s
staying the same with the
transition from Caputo to
Visconti? The employees.
Visconti said all Caputo
employees will remain employed
with the change in
ownership.
“The employees are all
staying,” Visconti said.
“They’re great employees.
I love them. They’re doing
a great job.”
A group of 22nd Century
Media editors recently visited
Visconti Cheese Market
& Deli to sample some
of the market’s foods, featuring
the famous Caputo
cheese.
The Classic Italian
($7.99) features Volpi Genoa
salami, imported hot
capicola and mortadella, as
A sampling of Visconti Cheese Market & Deli’s sandwiches, including the Classic
Italian ($7.99), Very Italian Panino ($9.99) and the Prosciutto Panino (pictured in front;
$7.99). Photos by Megan Bernard/22nd Century Media
Visconti Cheese
Market & Deli
231 E. Wisconsin Ave.,
Lake Forest
(847) 482-0100
caputocheesemarket.
com
7 a.m.-7 p.m. Monday-
Friday
7 a.m.-6 p.m. Saturday
7 a.m.-5 p.m. Sunday
Desserts (left to right) include banana cake ($3.49),
Italian boat ($2.99), banana boat ($2.99) and lava cake
($3).
well as Caputo fresh mozzarella
and spring mixed
greens with tomato and
Caputo Melrose Italian
dressing. It’s served on a
fresh-baked European baguette.
The Very Italian Panino
($9.99) is also known as
the VIP. It includes Parma
prosciutto and Bufala mozzarella,
topped with tomato,
arugula and extra virgin
olive oil on a fresh-baked
European baguette.
Editors also sampled the
Prosciutto Panino ($7.99),
filled with Parma prosciutto,
Caputo fresh mozzarella
and Caputo Melrose
Italian dressing with tomato
and arugula served
on a fresh-baked European
baguette.
And no trip to an Italian
market would be complete
without dessert. Visconti
shared a large sampling
of the dessert offerings,
including Italian cookies
($8.99/pound), lava cake
($3), assorted pastries
($1.99 each), banana cake
($3.49), Italian boat ($2.99
each) and a banana boat
($2.99 each).
When reflecting on his
long-standing relationship
with the Caputo family,
Visconti said he sometimes
gets emotional.
“I owe all my success
to the Caputo family,” he
said. “They opened up
the door for me in many
ways.”
Every member of the
Caputo family has played
a role in his life.
“I love them,” he said. “I
love them to death. We’ve
known each other since we
were kids.
“They’re like family. I
never expected to be doing
this for them. It’s an honor.
It really is.”