Our Story

Authentic Quality

Nestled in the charming neighborhood of Bay View, you will find Tenuta’s Italian Restaurant. Cesare and Antonia Tenuta traveled to America from the southern tip of Italy in 1961, bringing a vast knowledge of Italian cuisine and recipes along with them. With a passion for great food and treating people like family, they opened up Tenuta’s Italian Restaurant in 2002.

Frank Tenuta along with his devoted staff, continue the legacy honoring family recipes serving the community dedicated to providing excellent food and service. Frank and his 2 daughters reside in the Bay View area contributing to the neighborhood activities and events that make Bay View the community that is loved by so many.

Our goal is to make simple, tasty, authentic, and homemade Italian food. By using local and fresh ingredients in all our dishes, we promise each dish will give you a little taste of Italy in every bite and keep you coming back for more.

In The Beginning

After Cesare and Antonia settled into their new community in Racine, Wisconsin, Cesare and his brother opened their first pizza place. Frank spent a good part of his formative years working in the restaurant.

In 2002, Frank discovered an unoccupied storefront in Bay View where Tenuta's Italian Restaurant was born. His dad's pizza dough and his mother's marinara sauce and lasagna where among the first recipes used to build the restaurant's authentic Italian reputation. These recipes along with Chef Eli's unique touches have earned Tenuta's "Best Italian Restaurant since 2015.

Our Menu

Our goal is to make simple, tasty, authentic and homemade Italian food. By using local and fresh ingredients in all of our dishes, we guarantee each dish will give you a little taste of Italy in every bite and keep you coming back for more.

Our Wines

If you were to list two things that define Italian cuisine, they would be pasta and wine. At Tenuta’s Italian Restaurant, we know how important a great glass of wine can be. Our selection ranges from the familiar to the exotic, and our staff is trained to help you pick the right bottle for every dish and personal preference.




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Our Backbone

Customer Testimonials

This place is amazing! didnt have a reservation and was able to get seated within minutes. this is a teeny tiny VERY cozy restaurant nestled in a cute little neighborhood. the food is incredible! we had the calamari as a started. SUPER crispy and flavorful. came with two sauces.

raquel hakkenberg

Our host was very kind and got our table ready even though we didn’t have a reservation. I do recommend making one ahead of time because it seemed to get very busy while we waited for our food, which was a very long wait. It took nearly an hour for our food to arrive, and we got there before the rush started. Our server was professional and friendly, she checked up on us often.

Maria Hernandez

Came here for Father’s Day dinner. Staff was friendly and gave great advice on the various pasta dishes which we were grateful for as everything sounded amazing. It turns out, you really cannot go wrong. The traditional Carbonara was amazing (but rich!), short rib (Manzo) was fabulous

Lauren Domski

Terrific food and cozy atmosphere at this neighborhood restaurant. Highlights included the carbonara, the meatball appetizer and the garlic bread (with marinara dipping sauce). The crispy kale really complemented the sweetness of the butternut squash ravioli. The Oregon pinot noir we ordered was perfect with the meal.

Ben Klepzig