Angelo Sannino has spent the past decade helping to build the southern Italian Doppio Zero restaurant group across the Bay Area, but his newest venture is more personal. He opened Fratm in downtown San Rafael earlier this month, naming it for his brother, Alberto Sannino, who runs the pizzeria with his girlfriend. The name comes from the Neapolitan dialect and translates roughly to “brother” or “one of my own,” underscoring the family connection at the heart of the restaurant.
Angelo Sannino chose San Rafael for his first solo project after his architect mentioned the corner space on Fourth Street, previously home to Casa Mañana and before that Iron Springs Public House. The wall of windows along one side made it an appealing fit, and with no Doppio Zero locations in the North Bay, he says the timing felt right.
The restaurant’s wood-fired Neapolitan pizzas, house-made pastas and classic Italian dishes reflect the southern Italian cooking the brothers grew up with in Naples, while the approach to polished execution and service draws on the restaurant experience Angelo Sannino has honed across California and beyond.
Chef Veronica Valenti, who previously worked at the Concord location, leads the kitchen, and Alberto Sannino commands the pizza oven. Most dry goods and specialty ingredients are sourced from Italy, while produce and proteins come from regional suppliers.
Small plates blend Mediterranean and Italian influences, ranging from baked octopus with wild arugula and cherry tomato confit and a substantial charcuterie and cheese board with 24-month aged prosciutto, mortadella, soppressata and truffle caciotta to Neapolitan-style meatballs simmered in spicy tomato sauce and baked Brussels sprouts tossed with pancetta and Parmesan.
Burrata appears paired with truffle honey and toasted hazelnuts, layered over roasted beets or spread on crostini topped with semi-dried tomatoes from Mount Vesuvius in Italy.
Wood-fired Neapolitan pizzas take center stage, baked in a handcrafted Stefano Ferrara Forni oven built by a family from Naples who has made pizza ovens for generations. The dome design and materials allow for extreme high heat, quick cooking and the signature tender, blistered crust associated with true Neapolitan pizza.
The interior of Fratm in San Rafael. (Photo by WDS Visuals)
San Marzano tomato sauce forms the base for red pies, from the familiar Margherita and diavola to one topped with jalapeño, Italian salami and sausage and another layered with capocollo, burrata and shaved Parmigiano-Reggiano. White pizzas skip the sauce in favor of wild mushrooms, truffle oil and creamy cheeses, including one with mortadella and pistachio and another combining pear with goat cheese and bacon.
Entrees include baked salmon with fresh vegetables, Mediterranean sea bass with lemon-olive oil herb sauce and four-hour braised short ribs with rosemary fingerling potatoes. Classic Italian comfort dishes like Neapolitan meat lasagna, eggplant parmigiana and gnocchi in a truffle fondue sauce round out the menu.
Desserts stick to Italian tradition with tiramisu, panna cotta in mango sauce and profiteroles filled with vanilla and chocolate cream. Cakes include a lemony limoncello version layered with mascarpone and white chocolate and a rich cioccolato cake topped with mixed berry sauce.
The wine list highlights Italian regions from Tuscany to Sicily, with 80% of the bottles sourced from Italy and the rest from California. Sparkling wines, rosés and a few nonalcoholic options complete the lineup. Draft beers include Menabrea from Italy and local craft pours, with Peroni and other bottled options available.
Sannino updated the dining room from its previous tenants, converting the bar and tap area into a pizza kitchen alcove and adding banquette seating along the adjacent wall. New lighting, wall color and tiles refresh the space while the original wood floor remains.
Born in Naples, Sannino moved to San Francisco in 2002 after working in restaurant kitchens in Italy and London for a decade. He began as a server in Mountain View for Gianni Chiloiro, who is now his Doppio Zero business partner.
His path took him through Il Pastaio in Beverly Hills and Trattoria Dell’Arte in New York before returning to California to open the first Doppio Zero with Chiloiro in Mountain View in 2014. Locations in San Carlos, San Francisco, Concord and Campbell followed, with two more planned in Livermore and Sacramento.
Fratm is open from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. and 4:30 to 10 p.m. Tuesdays through Fridays; 11:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. Saturdays; and 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sundays at 901 Fourth St. in San Rafael. For further details, visit fratmpizzeria.com or call 415-785-3478.
Leanne Battelle is a freelance food writer and restaurant columnist. Email her at ij.lbattelle@gmail.com with comments and find more local food news at therealdealmarin.com.