David Fhima will open a Sicilian eatery in downtown Excelsior next month

As David Fhima and his son Eli put the final touches on their new Sicilian restaurant in downtown Excelsior, they’re dishing on the details.

The restaurant, projected to open in mid- to late July, will be called Vagabondo, a reference to Fhima’s childhood nickname, given to him by his Sicilian grandmother.

“It’s Italian for ‘vagabond.’ My great-grandmother, my dad’s grandmother, Sultana, was Sicilian and one of my dad’s earliest memories is that she would pull on one of his ears and call him ‘Vagabondo’ after he came home dirty from playing on the streets,” Eli explained.

“My dad jokes that one of his ears is longer because of that. We’re really channeling that fun, playful spirit of Sultana, her dishes and our family’s Sicilian roots.”

Chef David Fhima was born in Morocco with one side of his family French, Spanish and Moroccan and the other side Sicilian-Italian. He currently runs the French-Moroccan Fhima’s and the French bistro Maison Margaux, both in Minneapolis, and has operated other Mediterranean eateries in the past. He said Vagabondo rounds out the type of cuisine he’s always wanted to serve.

“We’re coming full circle in doing the foods that I grew up with,” said David Fhima.

The menu will feature everything from sandwiches to seafood, as well as handmade pizzas, pastas and gelatos, made in a glass-walled room so those walking past can catch the action of dough being tossed, pasta being rolled and gelato being churned. Pizza will come in two varieties: Neapolitan-style, cooked in a wood-fired oven, and deeper dish Sicilian-style, made in cast-iron pans. Margherita, Sicilian sausage and other classic toppings, as well as build-your-own, will be offered.

“What they will have in common is our sourdough crust that’s going to be made with our 130-year-old starter dough from my other grandmother, my Moroccan grandma,” Fhima said.

Pasta will be a large part of the operation, including classic Sicilian dishes such as pasta alla Norma with eggplant, marinara sauce and basil, as well as la pasta con le sarde with sardines, anchovies, fennel, saffron and pine nuts. Many dishes will be available in full and smaller sizes.

“You’ll find dishes such as grandma’s Sicilian gnocchi for $28, $30 or you can have a small plate for $18,” Fhima said. “We’re going to be a very serious kitchen, but we’re not going to take ourselves too seriously. It’s going to be beautiful plating and food in a beautiful space, but at affordable prices and a fun atmosphere.”

The restaurant will span two floors: the main floor with 80 seats and lower level with 100 seats. A 30-seat back patio and 16-seat sidewalk patio — with views of nearby Lake Minnetonka — is also part of the grand plan. While the main level dining room will have a more contemporary feel, the downstairs area will evoke throwback vibes with references to Mick Jagger and to one of the space’s previous incarnations, Bacon Drug.

As the story goes, a moment in that space might be the inspiration behind a famous song. When the Rolling Stones played a gig at Danceland Ballroom in Excelsior in 1964 and Jagger dipped into Bacon’s while in town, he encountered Stones fan Jimmy Hutmaker, or “Mister Jimmy,” who griped to the rock star that the store was out of cherry cola. He settled for a regular Coke before declaring to Jagger, “You can’t always get what you want.” In 1969, the Stones’ released the “Let It Bleed” album with the song “You Can’t Always Get What You Want.”

“To pay homage to that, our main bar is going to make our own variety of Italian sodas,” Fhima said.

Vagabondo will be open for lunch, dinner and social hour. Once they’ve settled in, Fhima, who also runs Mother Dough Bakery in Minneapolis, said they hope to add a coffee counter in the space, at 205 Water St., that was more recently home to Red Sauce Rebellion.

“We’ll have Italian coffee and pastries,” Fhima said.