Five brothers and sisters, there were eight of us in the house. My mom is from Iowa, she's Irish, she came to Milwaukee to go to Alverno College and grew up in Greenfield. My father is from Italy and worked in a restaurant (for) the first part of my life, and then he went on to sell food. Johnny Vassallo: I was born in Racine, moved to Milwaukee when I was 2. With more plans in the works, a buzzing Mo's - A Place for Steaks still growing in downtown Milwaukee and in Indianapolis, too, Vassallo sat down with OMC to talk about his successes, failures, attitudes and, of course, his thoughts on Milwaukee (excuse us, Mowaukee). has proven many wrong, and the former bartender and high school dropout has more than made his mark on the Milwaukee restaurant and bar scene. He's all about innovation and no stranger to risk, Vassallo opened Mo's - A Place for Steaks downtown in 1999, a time when most of the power structure in town was still pessimistic about the neighborhood and its ability to sustain upscale, quality development. Recently, he changed his Mo's Market to a casual Italian dining spot, Mo's Cucina and just weeks ago OMC reported on his plans for a new 24-hour coffee house called Mocha-A Coffee Bistro at 124 E. In less than six months, he's made his new place, Moceans, into one of the best-reviewed seafood restaurants in town. Milwaukee restaurateur John Vassallo, call him Johnny V., expanded his presence in "Mowaukee" in March with the purchase of Grenadier's, the once-popular upscale restaurant downtown.
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