Francesca Ronzio admits she and her husband, Matteo, may have been naïve at first in their decision to immigrate to the U.S. from their native Italy in February 2015. “We were like crazy people, very naïve people with a dream: to change and to just see how it goes,” she said. “It was just the two of us, and you miss not just your country; you miss people who have known you for a lifetime.”

But the couple, beleaguered by their corporate career lifestyle working for companies like American pharmaceutical giant Johnson & Johnson, felt the ambition to build their own business. That perceived naivete has since led to the Ronzios opening a novel dining concept, Gusto Italiano Market in Bedford — a blend of Italian culture as a combination grocer, grab-and-go deli and pizzeria.