A bustling new eatery on Astoria’s Pier 12 rounds out offerings of Italian fare in the region.

Opening earlier this month, Fede Trattoria combines the simple charm of a neighborhood restaurant with expansive views of the Columbia River.

Owners Sean Hammond and Faith Davenport, who have between them more than 50 years of experience in the restaurant industry, have transformed their love of Italian cuisine into a casual dining experience with a focus on traditional and seasonal food.

“I love cooking Italian food,” Hammond said, adding that he discovered the cuisine some two decades into his career as a chef and honed his craft with regular visits to Italy. “It’s really simple, ingredient driven, and fun to cook.”

A journey from Buffalo to New York City, and later to Portland, brought the couple to Astoria just as the pandemic began. Encounters with longtime residents helped them get connected and an accident of fate allowed them to move into their space on Astoria’s Pier 12. “I think it’s getting hard now in Astoria to get into a place, it seems a lot of people are looking,” Davenport said, “we got really lucky.”

Fede means “faith” in Italian. “It’s common in Italy to name a place after the lady of the house,” Davenport said. The eponymous ring that encircles the restaurant’s name in the logo is a Roman era wedding ring.

Mere days into Fede’s journey as a restaurant, the place bustles, with a wait list for one of a dozen tables on popular nights. Reservations are possible only for parties of six or more.

“It’s been an organic, small-town thing, it just kind of happened and we’ve gotten a positive response and we’re grateful,” Hammond said. He credits the duo’s enthusiasm and the ensuing word of mouth for its success. “Our focus is on the local community, where everyone can come and enjoy some good, accessible, simple Italian food,” he added.

The ideal dining experience unfolds over four courses, from antipasti to one of a dozen pastas, to soup or salad and meat, fish or vegetable entrees, plus desserts. Everything at the restaurant is handmade, sourced from local purveyors or imported. Italian cocktails, spirits and wines as well as homemade lemonades comprise the beverage list.

“We’re not going to carry anything that doesn’t go with Italian food,” Davenport said, “so we’re not going to get tequila unless I get 500 requests for margaritas … but even then probably not,” she added.

Fede’s menus are printed on paper, enabling frequent dish changes based on what’s in season, all while sticking with traditional fare. “It’s more Italy than Little Italy,” Hammond said of the menu. Davenport notes that there are no specials, because “everything is a special,” given how frequently the menu turns over.

“I wanted to make the menu big enough that people wouldn’t get bored,” Hammond said. “There’s room for everybody.”

Fede Trattoria

1 12th St., Pier 12, Astoria

Open from 3:30 to 9:30 p.m. Wednesdays through Saturdays and 3:30 to 8:30 p.m. on Sundays.

www.fedeastoria.com