Lucente’s Osteria is ushering in a new generation of Abbotsford restaurateurs' with the launch of their food truck this fall.

Owned by wife and husband Alicia and Perry Leonard, the pair use their combined 40 years of restaurant experience to give the local culinary community a taste of authentic, homemade, and fresh Italian cooking, with recipes that have familial roots from Alicia’s Italian heritage.

“My mom always cooked when I was younger. She's a full Italian. so she just made all the pastas everything fresh all the time, says Alicia Leonard. “She took everything from her great grandma and her grandma. Perry and I, we did talk to my mom who did give us some recipes that come from my great great grandma. The recipes are a little bit more modernized because Italian cuisine is fresh. Everything is fresh.”

Originally from Langley, the Leonards saw the young population growth in Abbotsford as a chance to establish their roots in town.

“Vancouver, they have Asper Luigi, they have Chin Chin, and those places, the pasta is delicious. They make their own pasta fresh. But Abbotsford doesn't have anywhere like that,” Alicia says. “The Fraser Valley actually doesn't have anywhere like that.”

“They're bringing in a lot of younger people downtown, they plan on having a lot of younger families and everything, it's gonna become a really nice area.”

“I want to kind of grow with the city,” Perry explains. “We met the mayor and he's talking about how it's [the city] really growing. Especially the downtown core with all the new construction and new buildings coming up, and we were like, we really want to be a part of this area.”

Lucente’s Food Truck, made its first appearance at the Taste of Abbotsford initiative in mid-September, marking a major step in the Leonards' goal of opening a cocktail and wine bar in Abbotsford that will pair with their fresh dining experience. 

Listen to the story below: