East Passyunk Mainstay Italian Restaurant to Close This Week

Italian fine-dining restaurant Paradiso is closing its doors this Saturday, June 1 after a 15-year run on East Passyunk Avenue.

Head chef Lynn Rinaldi, born and raised in Philadelphia, told philly.com over the weekend that the closure follows some serious “soul-searching” on her end, after an ankle injury that took her off her feet for three months.

What’s going in the restaurant’s place we don’t yet know, but Rinaldi says she’s already made a deal with a restaurateur to sell Paradiso’s assets, including its building (1627 E. Passyunk Ave), philly.com reports.

The news comes after another recent closure by Rinaldi; she and her former husband Corey Baver shut down their sushi restaurant Izumi in late April after 10 years on East Passyunk. A BYOB called River Twice is opening in its place.

It’s safe to say this isn’t the last we’ll be hearing from the trailblazing chef, however. Rinaldi told Philly Mag that she and Baver closed Izumi because “an opportunity came up” for “another major project” — details of which we still don’t know. She told philly.com following Paradiso’s closure that she will “turn up again in the restaurant business.”

Paradiso / Official

Rinaldi opened Paradiso on a stretch of East Passyunk Avenue that’s a hub for trendy restaurants long before it was what it is today. It quickly became known for its rich pastas, vast selection of Italian wines, and rooftop garden. The chef grew up in South Philadelphia herself, where she remains active in the community outside of her culinary work. She and Baver say their next project will “possibly” also be in South Philly.

STATUS: Paradiso is closing on Saturday, June 1.

• Paradiso, one of the longtime East Passyunk restaurants, to close [philly.com]
• All Paradiso coverage [EPHI]
• Popular East Passyunk Sushi Restaurant Izumi Closes After 10 Years [Philly Mag]