THE owner of a new street food business which opened on the first day of restrictions easing for hospitality has described the launch as everything he could have hoped for.

Chris Turner was nervous about introducing Cotto Pasta Kitchen to Warrington Market due to the uncertainty of the pandemic.

The former St Gregory’s student also runs Eastern Point and thought twice about expanding his offer at the Cookhouse.

He said: “I was a bit apprehensive at first about launching a business during this challenging time.

“I was trying to figure out what it would be like after the lockdown and how people would react to coming back outside again.

“But it’s been good. It’s been busy from the start and we’ve had great feedback on the food. It’s everything I could have hoped for so far.”

Like Eastern Point which offered a contemporary twist on Asian street food, Cotto specialises in hearty Italian dishes with flair.

Chris, who grew up in Callands, was inspired by his time working as a chef in various Manchester restaurants over 10 years.

He added: “There is nothing like this in Warrington so I saw an opportunity. People no longer need to go to Manchester or Liverpool for these experiences.”

At Cotto, Chris works alongside Mirko Lomazzi, who is originally from Milan.

Chris said: “We worked together in a few different places and we became good mates outside of work. He’s someone that I can trust with anything.

Warrington Guardian:

“He came over to help at Eastern Point and then the opportunity with Cotto Pasta Kitchen came and it just made sense for an Italian guy to work there.”

When it comes to the food itself, Chris has many favourites.

He added: “We’ve got a bolognaise which is slow cooked beef in tomatoes and red wine. We cook that for a good five or six hours until the meat is really tender. That is the main staple. I think it is an essential on every Italian menu.

“We have a meatball lasagne. With that we’re trying to bring more of a street food style as the Cookhouse is hip and trendy and you want you want food that pops in front of people and makes them go 'wow'.

"Another classic we’ve got is spaghetti carbonara. It’s so simple to make but it’s one of those that everyone loves. It’s been one of our biggest sellers.

"We’ve also got a Tuscan porchetta sandwich which is essentially a slow pork cooked with an Italian liqueur called Amaro and orange zest. We used confit garlic and it just falls apart when you rub it onto the meat and we let that marinade for 24 hours.

"We then cook it at a medium temperature and it really gets the crackling around the pork so it is soft on the inside and crispy on the outside.

"We’ve been thankful it’s been really well received. We think it’s something a bit different that we’re offering.

"It’s good to see people sitting down and relaxing at the market with the food and finally having a chance to take things a bit easier."