The best kind of Italian restaurant is one that feels at once old and new — simultaneously seasoned, yet fresh. The Oklahoma City metro has its fair share of institutions that fit the bill, but few nail that balancing act quite like Vignola’s Italian Kitchen, a recent Edmond addition with serious culinary cred.
Newly opened at 23 W. 1st St. in the Edmond Railyard, which has experienced a fair amount of flux lately with several closings (and the opening of the new Remix Ramen), the homespun restaurant hails from husband-wife team Ashley and Giovanni Vignola, who moved to Oklahoma in 2020 after establishing an in-demand Italian catering outlet in the D.C. area. That company, which still operates in Maryland, paved the way for the pasta-centric fast-casual eatery in Edmond, and a homecoming for Ashley as a native Oklahoman.
The Edmond restaurant may be brand new, but its roots run deep. Before the Vignolas launched their catering company, they were honing family recipes and making everything from scratch, and in Giovanni’s case, attending culinary school in Florence. Learning from his Northern Italian grandfather and his Southern Italian mother, Giovanni became adept at scratch-made pasta, soulful soups and hearty sauces, using those skills to take over the family deli upon his return from Italy. When the pair met, they ran a market together and amassed a swift following. “In 2008, we started our catering business in Maryland,” Ashley explained. “We got a brick and mortar and started doing private catering from that kitchen. People who had been going to Vignola for decades wanted another restaurant.” To meet demand, they turned an on-site storage space into a hole-in-the-wall restaurant with a curated menu.
Since they were considered a market, they were allowed to remain open during COVID, but the pandemic helped spur the couple to move to Ashley’s home state. “My dad is from here, and we’ve been visiting forever,” she said. “We intended to do something here, but didn’t know exactly what. We knew there was room for authentic Italian, so we thought we’d stick to this small hole-in-the-wall concept and see how it’s received.”
The result is a restaurant that feels at once casual and sincere — a career culmination and a love letter to homegrown passions. Vignola’s Italian Kitchen is a reflection of years of work, and generations of influence. And true to those influences, everything about the eatery is palpably homey and comforting, from the handmade pastas and bubbling marinara sauces to the wood-clad motif and its location inside the Edmond Railyard. “The Railyard feels very community-based,” Ashley said. “In Italian culture, food is how you show your love, and connect with people. We wanted a community-based place where we could connect.”
At Vignola’s, connection takes the form of verdant salads, golden-brown arancini and the best eggplant Parmesan in the metro. The sauces are almost entirely family recipes, and most pastas — including two kinds of pillowy gnocchi — are made in-house. Salads are bright and fresh, subs come both cold (e.g., Italian cold cut, pesto chicken) and hot (e.g., porchetta, meatball), and that exemplary eggplant Parm, a recipe from Giovanni’s mother, is a masterpiece of tender fried eggplant, basil-kissed marinara, molten mozzarella and parmigiana.
Although still new in Edmond, it’s the kind of Italian restaurant that feels familiar and seasoned. It’s these recipes and traditions, coupled with years of experience both overseas and across the country, that make Vignola’s Italian Kitchen an instant classic.
Looking for more pasta perfection? Check out this list of 10 Local Pastas You Need to Try Now.
