The mystery of Valley Road has been solved – a chef from Tuscany is moving into the a place where Five Guys used to serve burgers. Tuscany formally opened its doors on May 22, 2012 to bring homemade Italian faire to Upper Montclair.

Located next to Jafajems and across from Over The Moon on Valley Rd. in Monclair, Tuscany has the advantage of a front door on Valley Road and a rear entrance opening to the Bellevue parking plaza, making it really easy to have dinner and a movie.

Owner Valter Cianni arrived in the US from Italy in the 1980s and brings an authenticity to Italian dining that is welcome in Montclair.

Fresh pasta takes center stage. In our sneak peek we got to see the Cannelloni being rolled for the evenings meals. Fresh ingredients were brought together for the filling and the sheets of delicate pasta were quickly transformed into their classic tubular form. Most of us would probably fumble, spilling ingredients everywhere, tearing pasta, and taking way too much time to do the same task. Here it was like watching a skilled magician, except in this case we know that everything the magician hand’s touch has a prize!

With nary an hour to go before opening time the kitchen was a flurry of activity. Eggplant was being fried, cannelloni rolled, fruit was being readied for desserts, and everything was spotless.

Cianni owns other restaurants so it’s no surprise that his crew works like a precision drill team, all laughing and expressing a bit of first day excitement in Italian!

The walls of Tuscany showcase oils of Tuscan scenes, both landscapes and village scenes. Take note of the authentic Tuscan Gates surrounding the entrance to the open kitchen. Tuscany is BYOB, but Angelbeck’s is just across the street, so all is good in the world!

Tuscany is open every day of the week for lunch and dinner.