Melksham welcomes new Italian restaurant to town centre

Mayor Terri Welch raises a glass to toast the opening of Casa with assistant manager Nico Kalia, manager Ilir Bakiki and chef Joe Lovejoy

A NEW Italian restaurant in the town centre has been officially opened by the Mayor of Melksham, cllr Terri Welch. 

Casa opened its doors for the first time on Tuesday with many in Melksham welcoming the new restaurant which owners describe as, “the only one of its kind for miles around.”

The restaurant is located on Bath Road in the former Carpet Barn shop, which has been unoccupied for some time, and is already proving popular with a high number of bookings already taken.

The independent restaurant is owned by four partners who have each contributed to the cost of getting Casa up and running. They all have a wealth of experience in the restaurant trade and they have been overwhelmed by the support shown by the Melksham community.

Manager Ilir Bakiji said, “The response from the locals has been fantastic and we have been made to feel most welcome in the town.

“We all have experience working for big companies such as Cote, Strada and Zizzi and one thing we didn’t like about those places was the way food was produced.

“We believe in producing the food in-house so it is as fresh as possible and we also use local producers – that way the quality of food is guaranteed. We make 98% of our menu right here on the premises and that includes the desserts. Our tiramisu is to die for, you won’t find better anywhere else!

“Our ethos is to produce good quality food with fine dining. That is not to say our portions are small, we believe they are excellent size and the quality is also there as well.

“The amount of interest has been far more than we ever could have expected and already we have taken a lot of bookings for the coming weeks.

“We will have a specials board that will change every three to four weeks so it’s always worth a visit.”

Mayor Terri Welch said, “It is great that Melksham has another fine restaurant and I know many people in the town have been looking forward to it opening. From what I have seen and been told I think we can expect the highest standards from Casa.”

Casa will be open 11am-11pm Monday to Saturday and 12noon-10pm on Sunday. Call 01225 704997 to make a booking or for more information.