Lynora’s Italian restaurant is celebrating 50 years in business, and the family that runs it plans to expand well beyond Palm Beach County. The restaurant began as an 800-square-foot pizzeria in Lake Worth in 1976. It now has six locations stretching from Jupiter to Boca Raton.
Angelo Abbenante, son of founders Raffaele and Maria Abbenante, now leads the brand. He said about five more locations are in the pipeline. The next one is set for Melbourne, followed by Fort Lauderdale, Wellington, Royal Palm Beach and Delray Beach, he said.
The Abbenante parents emigrated from Italy and settled in Lake Worth after his mother found the New York winters too cold. Abbenante said he grew up working seven days a week and eventually worked every job in the restaurant, from washing dishes to making pizzas beside his mother on the line.
Many dishes from the original menu remain, including the hoagies, eggplant parmesan and chicken and veal parmesan. Bread, pasta and sauces are still made in house. The sauce takes eight hours to prepare, and the meatballs use the recipe his mother started with 50 years ago, Abbenante said.
Pizzas are cooked in a wood-burning oven at 700 to 800 degrees, in a hybrid style that blends New York and Neapolitan techniques. Abbenante said each location is designed to reflect its community. He credited local support for the restaurant’s longevity.
