The dire sense of pending doom in 2026 for the hospitality industry can certainly feel like an unseen weight. But perhaps no story is more uplifting and cheer-inducing than Massimo’s Naples, which will open its doors to the public on Wednesday, Feb. 4.
Led by the much-loved (and much-missed) former leader of Michael’s on Naples, Massimo Aronne, the space sits directly next to the former restaurant he led to success. That juxtaposition is, amusingly, ironic. Of course, the abrupt closure of Michael’s on Naples—led not by a lack of patronage but by a sale to the massive restaurant group Kronfli Bros. for another Bacari location—was felt most not for the idea of the restaurant but by its people, who represented it. And that included Massimo and Chef Eric Samaniego in particular.
Massimo had considered many things. One included a nine-room bed-and-breakfast—”The ultimate in hospitality,” he noted—on the coast of Italy. Another included possibly taking over another space in Long Beach. Come Thanksgiving, he had his answer on his future route: taking over the former Michael’s Market space he himself managed…