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At 7:30 a.m. Friday, Asbury Park will see the doors of Dino’s on Main Marketplace open for the first time.

The market will offer mostly Italian items like fresh homemade ravioli, mozzarella, gravies, brick oven pizzas and preserves—but shop owner Dino LaSasso [shown above] loves food so much, he doesn’t want to be limited to only serving Italian food.

“My vision was to have a place where people can come to buy healthy, quality food, fresh bread and baked goods,” he said. “Most are artisan, organic-type products.”

Dino’s on Main will also offer fresh cut flowers and “everything you need to have a lovely dinner at home—whether you want to cook it yourself or have us cook it for you,” he said.

The market will also offer off-site catering options. LaSasso is in the midst of crafting a menu of possible packages for holiday meal choices.

As a child, LaSasso remembers venturing to the local market with his grandmother on Saturdays and he would like to see a return to that, since kids today don’t know what that was like, he said. The local factor also gives business owners the opportunity to establish relationships with their patrons, like “back in the old days” when more buyers frequented local mom and pop stores, he said.

“All of our choices have been taken away by large corporations over the years,” he said.

Asbury is the perfect venue for a resurgence of local markets and shops that offer the old-world “mom and pop” feel, LaSasso said.

The market occupies a corner spot at the intersection of Cookman Avenue and Main Street where a piano business was located for decades. Before LaSasso leased the space, the location was used as an office furniture store. Being a fan of art deco, LaSasso decided to “go with the look of the building” and transformed the interior to follow an “art deco with a twist” theme, which speaks to the quirkiness of Asbury Park, he said.

“I did all of the painting and refinishing myself,” he said. “It all started with the red chandelier [near the front entrance] and all went from there.”

His decision to set up shop on Main Street is based on his love for the community. He and his partner of 20 years, Steven Cancellieri, are Asbury Park residents and believe it is important that businesses return to the city’s main thoroughfare, he said.

“People who live here, love it. That’s just the way it is,” he said. “We want people to see the best of Asbury Park, and it would be nice to see businesses flourishing along Main Street.”

LaSasso isn’t sure yet how many days the market will be open for. He is tossing around the idea of being open 7 days a week, but recognizes he and his staff may need at least one day off to prep the food they will be cooking from scratch on-site. Even the butter used in their recipes will be freshly made, which really makes a difference in terms of how the food tastes, he said.

A 7:30 opening time will also give commuters a chance to stop in and grab a coffee or espresso on their way to the train station across the street. The option to buy fresh made food will also be available, but Dino understands the need for commuters to be able to get in and out of the market quickly in the morning, so prepared food will also be available for people on-the-go.

He and his mother, Patricia Bender, will be handling the day-to-day operations of the site and they’ve recently brought on Arturo Montoya of the now-closed Cotija Latin Flavors restaurant to work for them. Cotija closed Saturday evening.

“It just turned out to be perfect timing for everyone involved,” he said.

Dino’s on Main is located at 300 Main Street.

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