Alexandria Fixture Geranio Has Closed

Geranio, the family-run Italian restaurant that began serving pasta to diners in Old Town Alexandria during the Ford administration, has closed.

Chef and owner Troy Clayton announced that he shut down the cozy neighborhood eatery under his command for nearly two decades via an email message sent to supporters on March 1.

“It is with a heavy heart, but a lightness of being, I announce the closure of a 42 year old institution in Old Town Alexandria,” Clayton wrote in his farewell message. “My heartfelt thanks to all of our loyal guests in what was a second home to us all. It was a great run, and in so far as all good things eventually come to their natural end, we all did it well from the first day to the last.”

Clayton, who at one point operated three restaurants in the area, thanked his predecessors, Lucio and Janey Bergamin, for bringing Geranio into being in 1976 and for entrusting him with its care in late 1998. The restaurant, which Eater readers included in a discussion about the area’s most underrated restaurants back in 2012, served classic Italian fare ranging from gnocchi in gorgonzola cream sauce and osso bucco with saffron risotto to tiramisu layered with mascarpone.

Clayton says he plans to do some traveling, but also tells Eater to “stay tuned” about future endeavors.