The Pinsa Start-Up
Sera is a Roman-inspired Italian pop-up.
It began when Paolo and Aly were working together in Chicago’s West Loop, surrounded by Michelin-starred neighbors and James Beard winners. In 2023, what started with a gelato machine in their apartment grew into a shared dream.
By 2024, Paolo was finishing pizza school in Rome while Aly was travelling Europe, shaping the idea that would become Sera.
In January 2025, Sera started out of an apartment in West Town, stretching dough and making pasta for what would be the first hires. By April, Kama (an Indian restaurant in Wicker Park) gave them a change to showcase their culinary and hospitality skills every Monday. From there, Sera grew from one night a week to 4–5 pop-ups weekly across Chicago, bringing a new Roman style of pizza to neighborhoods all over the city.
Sera focuses on using local and seasonal ingredients sourced directly from farmers and growers. Almost every dish we create is tied together by one essential ingredient: pure extra virgin olive oil from Paolo’s family farm in Copadimonte, a small town just an hour north of Rome.
ItalOil is the bridge between our Roman roots and Chicago kitchens. Check out ItalOil to learn more.
