Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Marco Zafarana & Ali Snow. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Hi Marco Zafarana & Ali Snow, thanks for joining us today. What was it like going from idea to execution? Can you share some of the backstory and some of the major steps or milestones?

Like most ideas, our concept for Zaffo’s Artisan Pasta took years percolating in our minds to develop into what it is today (and it is still changing and evolving!). Marco has always been a big foodie and comes from a family that enjoys cooking, so he’d always considered the possibility of creating a food business, especially after moving to the US in 2018. We talked and talked through different ideas, different iterations; tested recipes with friends and asked for their feedback. Saw what they liked and what didn’t rise to the top. We began to plan in earnest and started researching commissary kitchens right around when COVID hit, so that slowed down our plans as we (and the rest of the world) were figuring out what steps to take next.
We’ve conceptualized Zaffo’s in three different ways: as a fast-casual pasta restaurant, selling bottled and packed homemade sauces, or as a pasta meal box company. We decided to start with the fast-casual restaurant concept because it was easier logistically for us to get started, and at a certain point we realized we needed to just jump in and try something otherwise we’d be at risk of analysis-paralysis.
After researching a few different commissaries (and determining that the cottage-license would not work for us) we landed on ComCom Kitchen. Just determining what equipment we needed was a huge first hurdle! We learned a lot those first few months before opening for business and were grateful for the help of colleagues at ComCom who helped us get to know the space.
We also realized we needed to simplify. There are so many incredible pasta recipes out there and our team is just two people, so we decided to stick to 1 pasta dough recipe and 5 types of sauce. We also decided to go with three types of dessert. We wanted to test the market and see if there was an appetite for our products and which ones did best.
Pricing was another huge thing to figure out and is something we’re still continually tweaking.
Once we had this all figured out, we just needed to create a logo, marketing, and learn how to use the various platforms like DoorDash, Wix (for our website) and Instagram – this was a huge learning curve!

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

Zaffo’s Artisan Pasta is a family-run business by Marco Zafarana and Ali Snow. We opened for business in March 2023 and offer fresh pasta, cooked to order and ready to take away and enjoy. You can order in person, online for pickup, or delivery. Choose one of four different cuts of fresh pasta and one of five sauces and we’ll prepare it fresh in front of your eyes. We also offer a selection of homemade Italian desserts and drinks to round out a perfect Italian meal. We follow traditional Italian recipes and use only the highest-quality ingredients available. Anything we can’t source locally comes directly from Italy.

What sets us apart is our fast-casual concept. We take inspiration from pasta’s origins in Italy as a street food. We don’t skimp on the quality and pride ourselves on the authenticity of our products. Everything is made fresh and how you’d expect your Italian nonna (grandma) to make it for you.

We also recently launched our lasagnas for preorder on our website (ragu alla Bolognese and pesto alla Genovese). They’re delicious and we’re really excited to share these with the community! They’re perfect for events, family gatherings, or simply a nice night in. You can also preorder our packaged fresh pasta to cook at home. So many great choices!

How do you keep in touch with clients and foster brand loyalty?

We feel strongly that what sets a business apart is a customer-first orientation and attention to detail. At Zaffo’s we personally respond to every review we get and make our best effort to make the customer feel heard and valued, whether they place an order with us online or if we get to meet them in person. We are always thinking of fun ways to reward our most loyal customers, whether it be a personal touch with a special note or treat or coupons towards future meals. We also take the quality of our food very seriously, so we can foster trust with our customers by consistently providing a delicious product. We treat people like people and not a means to an end. We also treat people how we’d like to be treated.

Where do you think you get most of your clients from?

Going along with our answer above, we’ve found that the absolute best form of marketing is word-of-mouth. If folks have a great experience at Zaffo’s and tell their friends and family, that is a huge boost for us. We’ve also had tremendous help from several local food influencers on social media who are extremely knowledgeable about the food scene here in Salt Lake City. They are the kindest people, passionate about what they do and we have been so honored to work with them to highlight our budding business. Finally, events have also been a great way to get our name out there and meet new people. New opportunities often develop out of relationships so we take great care to foster our network.

Contact Info:

• Website: zaffospasta.com
• Instagram: zaffospasta
• Facebook: Zaffo’s Artisan Pasta
• Linkedin: Zaffo’s Artisan Pasta
• Yelp: Zaffo’s Artisan Pasta

Image Credits
Photo credit: Ali Snow