The Autostrada
Daily Italian life is centered around pizza, panini, coffee, gelato, family and friends.
With Autostrada we want to bring the same lifestyle to Carrboro. Life’s just better with those six things!
We took our name from the national system of motorways in Italy and modeled the concept after the AutoGrills, which feed hungry drivers looking for fuel and a quick bite or meal. In the States highway exits have fast food. In Italy they have slow food…delicious sandwiches, coffee, gelato and more made with love and quality ingredients.
Located in historic Carr Mill, Autostrada features a pizza and panini restaurant and a gelato and coffee shop directly across the hall. Our Neopolitan pizzas are handmade using imported “OO Non-GMO” flour and we pre-ferment the dough for the perfect texture and chew. Don’t miss our Nonna (The Grandmother), a traditional upside-down pie! Pizzas, panini, and salads are prepared with the freshest ingredients. Vegetarian and gluten-free options are always available. We source our Gelato from the finest producers and make many flavors in-house. Coffee is locally-roasted by our friends at Carrboro Coffee Roasters.
Stop by for lunch or dinner, grab a coffee or gelato during the afternoon…or better yet combine both experiences for the ultimate Autostrada visit. We have a lifelong passion and connection to Italy and Formula One, and Autostrada aims to be a destination for F1 race days and culture in Carrboro.
Our Story
Chef and owner Drew Moore grew up in Durango, CO and was working at Mama’s Boy, a family Italian pizza and pasta restaurant, by his twelfth birthday.
At 17 Drew headed to the Culinary Institute of America, where he was the youngest student on campus, before apprenticing at iTrulli in New York City. His next stop was at the 2 star Michelin Restaurante San Demenico in Imola, Italy.
From 2000 to 2003 Drew lived above the restaurant, falling in love with Italy and with Formula One racing, which at the time was almost unknown in the United States. Imola is home to the Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari race track which hosted the Emilia Romagna Gran Prix. During the race week San Domenico hosted the families and race teams of Ferrari, McLaren, Mercedes and others.
Drew returned to the States and to restaurant jobs in Aspen, CO and Boston, MA before making the move to North Carolina. After working in several noted kitchens in the Triangle, Drew opened Venable Bistro in Downtown Carrboro in 2012 and B-Side Lounge directly behind Venable in 2014.
The pull of Italy brought Drew back in 2022 and again in 2024 when his son Jackson studied abroad in Rome after his freshman year in high school. After a culinary tour of Italy, including a stop at San Domeneco, Drew knew he needed to bring Italian back to North Carolina and the aforementioned six things drove the concept.
Autostrada offers a return to the business he grew up in at age 12– a passionate pizza restaurant with delicious paninis, gelato, and coffee. A place to bring friends and families together. And, a touch of Formula One to boot.
