There’s Only One Tambellini’s Now — and It’s Awesome

PHOTO COURTESY OF TAMBELLINI & CO.

At one point in Pittsburgh’s history, there were seven Tambellini restaurants located throughout the city. The owners were all related by blood, but unaffiliated when it came to serving mariana sauce.

Now there’s only one eatery bearing the family name — and its grand opening is Friday in Brookline.

Owned by soon-to-be married couple Mike Tambellini and Trista Fulton, Tambelli & Co. is an artisan Italian sandwich shop with 30 seats that quietly opened its doors last week for a trial run. On Wednesday, they sold out of everything, from 25 pounds of meatballs down to their last tomato.

“It was astounding; far beyond what I even expected,” says Tambellini, a chef who worked at his uncle’s place, Joseph Tambellini Restaurant, which closed in February after nearly two decades in Highland Park.

After a few years helming the kitchen at The Wheelhouse at Rivers Casino, Tambellini decided to take a gamble on opening his own place. It was around the same time he met Fulton, a fellow service industry veteran.

Since December 2025, they’ve been transforming a former Jolina’s Mediterranean Cuisine location into their Italian-American dream.

PHOTO COURTESY OF TAMBELLINI & CO.

Tambelli & Co. is a departure from the fine-dining establishments that put the family on the map. The 30-seat, counter-service eatery has a small menu of paninis, antipasto and dolci based on traditional recipes that are made with high-quality, imported ingredients and modern flavors. Take-out and catering are available.

And, of course, there are meatballs.

Across the board, the Tambellini clan makes a damn fine polpette. The sandwich shop’s mascots are Mario Meaty and Maria Mozzarella, anthropomorphic meatballs that will soon be featured on branding and T-shirts.

Expect to see me wearing one soon since I’m already a diehard fan of this dynamic duo.

I had my first Tambellini meatball in 2005, when I landed a job at the Bridgeville Area News and my new boss, Bob Pastin, took me out for a celebratory meal at the Tambellini’s on Railroad Street.

My most recent ¼-pound, pork-and-beef meatball came with fresh mariana, whipped Soprafina ricotta, Calabrian chili paste and honey. I also devoured a charcuterie board featuring Italian porchetta, sliced salami, mortadella and hand-pulled Mozzarella, and a chicken parm sandwich so big it barely fit on the table.

Tambellini & Co. serves their sandwiches on toasted Mediterra Bakehouse hoagie rolls and Tambellini makes sourdough focaccia in-house. I suggest the Focaccia Flight: four sticks with your choice of two add-ons or dip-ins such as giardiniera, pesto aioli and that to-die-for hot-honey ricotta.

PHOTO BY KRISTY GRAVER

The joint is BYOB and there are an assortment of Italian sodas, Acqua Panna mineral water and sparkling San Pellegrino in the cooler, along with fresh-squeezed lemonade that includes a delightful splash of butterfly pea syrup.

Before I reached max capacity, Fulton gave me a sample of the dessert that won her fiancee’s’s heart, her tres leches cake.

The Ohio-born chef has run restaurants across the Tri-state area, most recently Bakersfield, a Mexican eatery on Penn Avenue Downtown.

She bonded with Tambellini over their mutual love for filling bellies. The Brookline residents are excited to feed their neighbors, work with youth organizations and support local businesses.

Tambellini & Co. is the latest addition to the booming Brookline Boulevard business district that includes newcomers Asahi Ramen and Socotra Cafe & Grill, along with Moonlite Cafe, Aunt Di’s Cafe, Pepito’s Place, Red’s Good News, Pitaland and The Kickstand Sandwich Shop.

“The tradition on this strip is lovely,” Tambellini says. “I grew up on Brookline Boulevard and had the good fortune to purchase my childhood home from my father four years ago. I love this community.”

As they prepare for their wedding on June 21, Mike and Trista invite yinz to take a seat at the Tambellini family table or grab a couple of meatballs to go.