Plans are moving along for Capperini, a two-story Italian/Mediterranean restaurant 137 S. Easton in the Glenside section of Cheltenham Township.

Owner Ilya Vorobey, a Huntingdon Valley (Lower Moreland Township) resident, said he and his partners are expecting to open in roughly five months.

“We’re hoping to close the drywall in about two months. It’s going to take some time. Old buildings are difficult to work with, but we think it will be worth it,” he said.

Vorobey’s original proposal called for 138 seats on the first floor, 194 seats on the second floor, and roughly 16 outdoor seats. He said the second floor will likely seat closer to 150 to avoid overcrowding.

For now, Capperini is BYOB, though a liquor license is in the works. A public hearing and possible vote to approve a request by Capperini, LLC, for the transfer of a restaurant liquor license from Norristown to Cheltenham Township will be held on March 18.

A second-floor event space is planned as well.

“That floor has a large open space with high ceilings, big windows. We’re installing an elevator,” he said, noting that a bar will be situated on both floors.

Vorobey said the menu and atmosphere will lean casual, and one of the main attractions will be an all-you-can-eat dessert room.

“We don’t want it to be super expensive. We’re still trying to finalize the menu and the prices. We’re going to have homemade pasta, and we’ll have special water filters for that pasta,” he said. “The dessert room will be a completely new experience with maybe 30 desserts. After dinner, you have the option to come in there, or you can pick your own dessert.”

Vorobey said the building’s aesthetics are what drew him and his partners to open a restaurant in Glenside.

“A friend of mine stopped by there and said I’d like to open a restaurant. When I saw this building, it looked beautiful. It reminded me of an old European building, and I saw potential,” he said, nothing one of his partners is also of Huntingdon Valley, another of Warminster, and a fourth from Pine Valley. “We think people are going to enjoy it. Hopefully it’s going to be something really nice for the community. This is probably going to attract people from afar.”

Cheltenham first received an application for the 15,000 sf building and former Won Institute premises in December 2023. 

A website is forthcoming, Vorobey said. More to come.

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Renderings courtesy of Ilya Vorobey