Rittenhouse Square is about to get another restaurant from a Philly hitmaker. Via Locusta, from Michael Schulson, Nina Tinari, and Jeff Michaud, opens Tuesday, December 17, on Locust Street just off the park.

The focus at Via Locusta (1723 Locust Street) is on pasta, hand-made with fresh-milled flour in a rotating selection of 10 to 12 options. The menu also includes focaccia with cheese and fermented sausage, small plates like scallop crudo, and a few bigger meat, poultry, and fish dishes made for sharing.

Schulson and Tinari, his wife and business partner, are adding this new Italian restaurant to the list of popular Philly spots already in their empire, like Japanese restaurant Double Knot, steakhouse Alpen Rose, and massive Italian eatery Giuseppe & Sons. They also co-own Osteria, the former Marc Vetri restaurant on North Broad, with chef Michaud, who’s been at Osteria since it opened more than a decade ago. Michaud developed the Via Locusta menu with the restaurant’s executive chef, Ed Pinello.

The look at Via Locusta is from designer Home Studios, which also worked on Giuseppe & Sons. It’s another smaller space, compared to Giuseppe, with seats for 40 in the dining room and 10 at the bar. There’s also a private room upstairs overlooking the main dining room.

Starting December 17, Via Locusta is open Sunday to Thursday from 4:30 to 11 p.m. and Friday and Saturday from 4:30 p.m. to midnight.

Take a peek at the dining room and bar:

Marissa Evans

Marissa Evans

Here’s a 24-ounce dry-aged strip steak:

Marissa Evans

A plate of paccheri:

An artfully constructed salad:

Marissa Evans

A wreath of crudités:

Marissa Evans

And a photogenic scallop crudo:

Marissa Evans

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