Our Story
What is Bombolo?
If you’re a big fan of Italian cinema, you’ll know about Bombolo, aka Franco Lechner, one of Italy’s most recognizable comedic and character actors from the ‘50s through the ‘80s. Bombolo was easy-going and affable, but he also had a deep love for excellent cuisine—so much so that even today, “Bombolo” is an endearing term for someone with a round belly.
Bombolo is the brainchild of two siblings, Executive Chef Garret Fleming and Pastry Chef Eleanor Lacy.
Bombolo is our way of exploring the unique way American restaurants break molds and reject the pigeonholes of Old World restaurants. We aren’t an Italian restaurant. We aren’t a fine-dining restaurant. We’re not even one of those high-concept, chef-focused “New American” gastropubs. We’ve stolen some elements here and there, but to us, we’re just Bombolo. No other labels need apply.
And we’re excited to show you what we have to offer.
Garret Fleming,
Our Executive CheF
Bombolo is about reflecting one thing Old World cultures have perfected through their culinary traditions: making good eating, good drinking, and good living part of everyday life rather than a luxury. Consumerism has eroded our concern for where our food comes from, how much care goes into the preparation, and—to put it simply—how much fun dining can be. It’s time to bring that back, and we’re starting here in Chapel Hill.
Every dish at Bombolo starts with a story. “Bombolo is an extension of everywhere I’ve been and everything I’ve seen and tasted that made me pause and change my understanding of the world,” Chef Garret says. And having studied music and philosophy as an undergraduate, he’s been able to revise that understanding a lot. He’s always wanted to cook, and so he started an international law program at Northwestern University, thinking that would help him get what he wanted—the luxury of enough free time to cook frequently and with abandon.
It wasn’t until Eleanor asked him why he didn’t just go to culinary school that Garret realized he was taking quite a roundabout route to the kitchen. Since that eureka moment a little over a decade ago, he attended the Culinary Institute of America in New York, competed on Top Chef, and then opened three restaurants in Washington, DC: Lincoln in 2011, the Pig in 2012, and Barrel in 2014.
Moving from DC to Chapel Hill, Garret opened the wildly successful Big Belly Que, which served delicious barbecue for lunch and dinner throughout much of the pandemic. He’s taking on a new challenge with Bombolo, allowing his passion for big flavors and tiny details to lead him on this passion project, which is both the culmination of his culinary career and the distillation of his culinary expertise.
Eleanor Lacy,
Pastry Chef & Wine Curator
Raised by parents who scoffed at the idea of a “kid’s menu,” both Garret and Eleanor learned to love food, appreciate wine, and cherish the time spent with both in good company.
For Eleanor in particular, exploration has been a constant throughout her life. She’s been traveling to Italy from the tender age of nine, but she’s also traversed Europe, from England, France, and Germany to Slovakia, Poland, and Czechia. After getting her degree in medieval studies with an emphasis on Roman and medieval cooking, she lived in Siena with a traditional cook who taught her about balancing daily meals based on seasonal ingredients for maximum health and happiness.
Now that she’s been settled into her life in Chapel Hill for more than ten years, she’s raising two kids and plans to stay put and build up her community here in town.
Like so many of us, most of Eleanor’s skills in the restaurant world were learned incidentally at first and then extended to their fullest. She learned baking through her time managing a successful coffeeshop with excellent pastries, and then pushed that knowledge to become a seasoned pastry chef who prepared the desserts for Big Belly Que and won the award for Best Dessert in Chapel Hill Magazine. Now, she prepares elevated desserts in the restaurant she owns. She learned a little about wine and worked in wine sales, then pushed even further to earn wine knowledge certifications and become our wine curator.
Eleanor’s pastry work complements Chef Garret’s signature big, assertive flavors with robust, decadent desserts that are sure to leave you dreaming about that last bite.
