Order
— Three Generations · One Family —
From our family to yours
Before there was a dining room in Belleview, there was a grandfather, a tie, and a belief that every meal should be made with pride. This is how Monti Primo came to be.
— Where it begins —
Before there was Monti Primo Ristorante, there was my grandfather.
Every meal should be prepared with pride, and every guest treated with care and respect. — My grandfather’s belief, passed down three generations
The Army Kitchens
My grandfather was a cook in the Armenian military — feeding hundreds of soldiers a day from a single kitchen. One man, one apron, and pots nearly as big as the stove. There were no shortcuts and no excuses; every soldier ate, and every soldier ate well.
That kitchen taught him discipline, scale, and the quiet pride of feeding people who depended on him. It’s the same standard we hold our kitchen to today.
The Old Country
He dedicated his life to serving others through food — believing that every meal should be prepared with pride, and every guest treated with care and respect.
Those values stayed with him long after his military service ended, and became the foundation of our family’s approach to hospitality.
New York
He passed those values on to my father and his brothers, who carried them through restaurants in New York — long days, full dining rooms, and the same belief that food is how you take care of people.
Eventually they brought their passion for Italian cuisine south, to Oviedo, Florida.
Oviedo, Florida
It was in Oviedo that my journey began. At just 11 years old, I started helping in the family restaurant. I washed dishes, cleaned tables, swept floors, and helped wherever I was needed.
At the time, I didn’t realize it — but I was learning lessons that would stay with me for the rest of my life.
Leesburg · Naples Italian
Years later, when I was 19, my father opened Naples Italian Restaurant in Leesburg. Watching him build that restaurant taught me just how much hard work goes into taking care of people.
The long days. The sacrifices. The commitment to showing up, every single day.
Leesburg · The Family Business
My parents and I started Naples Italian in Leesburg when I was young, and from an early age I learned how to run a successful restaurant. Being busy all the time was something we were always proud of.
With almost a thousand positive reviews, we loved the business — the full dining rooms, the regulars who became friends, the nights that flew by.
Belleview · Today
None of this started with me. It started with my grandfather, and continued with my father.
Today, Monti Primo is my way of honoring the people who helped shape me — the same recipes, the same pride, the same care, brought to the table here in Belleview.
Generations in the kitchen
Cooking for this community
Years at Naples Italian in Leesburg
— What we learned —
A place where family and friends gather around a table, share a meal, enjoy each other’s company, and leave with a full stomach, a lighter heart, and the strength to take on another day.
As I’ve gotten older, I’ve come to appreciate something else. None of this started with me. It started with my grandfather, and continued with my father.
Today, Monti Primo is my way of honoring the people who helped shape me.
From our family to yours,
— The Monti Primo Family
