When Papa Joe’s Casa de Pasta in Mishawaka was extensively damaged after a fire in 2016, the owners decided not to reopen the restaurant. Soon after, the city of Mishawaka purchased the land where it once sat for its future plans of widening Union Street, but dedicated fans of the restaurant were left wondering what was next.

Kristina Ungerecht, who was a longtime server at Papa Joe’s, had wanted to open her own restaurant for about a decade and in 2019, the cards aligned for her to make her dream a reality. This June, Ungerecht, along with her husband Eric, opened Fanello’s Authentic Italian restaurant in the A-frame building at the 100 Center in Mishawaka. The space at 122 N. Center St. was previously filled by Carlucci’s Piz