FOOD lovers can bank on Westhoughton for serving up quality dishes.

The town is developing a reputation as a food and drink destination ­– with another bar and restaurant announcing plans to open at the end of the month.

Nabucco Bar & Restaurant will serve authentic Italian cuisine in the old Natwest bank building in Market Street.

Part owner and chef Joani Sera has been cooking and working in restaurants for over 30 years with successful eateries in Italy, USA, Canada and two others in Staffordshire and Glossop ­– and now Westhoughton.

He said: “We are friends and we like the area, we find it beautiful here in Westhoughton after my friends from Bolton told me about it.”

The Bolton News:

(Nabucco Bar & Restaurant)

With friend and business partner John Gjioka, Joani has split the grand interior into sections, with a downstairs family dining room split into two, a visible kitchen as people walk upstairs, and a bar upstairs with more seating.

The Bolton News:

(13097617)

Joani moved to Manchester 11 years ago with pastry chef and wife, Carmen Sera, and their children, Fransel and Morena Sera because they wanted to study in the UK.

He said: “I sold everything in Italy and came to England to see if I could live here – and I did, I loved it.

“My first impression was that it was amazing and now I am happy and love this country.

“I am so excited for the opening that I am counting down the days, nothing makes me happier than opening a new restaurant.”

The Bolton News:

(Nabucco Bar & Restaurant )

The chef opened a Nabucco’s in Italy, which continues to trade under the name due to its successful reputation.

Joani said: “They didn’t want to change it because it worked well for me.

“Since I was a child I followed my mother with her cooking, studied sport at university, but missed cooking so much, I had to go back into it.

“The kitchen for me is the most beautiful thing and in Italy it’s not just a job, but a passion to work as a chef.”

Joani and the team are also committed in serving vegan food as the chef himself specialises in vegan Italian cuisine, though he is not vegan himself.