Pensi Pasta Factory

Evette Lecce, owner
455 Reservation Rd.
Marina, CA
Tel: 831-883-9631
Pensipasta@aol.com

Markets: Aptos and Monterey

Products: Flavored and plain fresh cut pasta, 13 different filled ravioli, 3 fresh types of gnocchi, 12 pasta sauces, fresh grated cheeses, olives, dips, salsas and spreads, prepared entrees such as meat or vegetable lasagna, stuffed shells, gorgonzola polenta, meatballs, and more.

History/Philosophy: As a child, Evette Lecce, owner of Pensi Pasta Factory, learned to make fresh pasta from her great-grandmother in Sicily, Italy, and uses her recipes to this day. Her two grandmothers and mother also taught her to cook and make pasta sauces from ripe, local tomatoes and fresh herbs.

After being in the food business since she started working as a waitress at age 14, in 1998 Evette started Pensi Pasta so she would be able to take care of her two young daughters and make a living at something she loves to do. She sells seven lines of products consisting of about 30 different items at farmers markets, and wholesales to restaurants and stores, such as the Whole Foods Market in Monterey. She doesn’t maintain a retail store, but people are welcome to visit her Marina office to make purchases if they call first.

What she enjoys most about running her business is hearing the positive feedback from customers who say they love the silky texture of the fresh pasta and the delicious, creative fillings, ranging from Spicy Curry to Orange Ginger Black Sesame. “When I hear customers say how much they love our pasta and that they will never go back to dry pasta, that really makes my day!” says Evette.“Customers appreciate the fact that they can get everything they need for dinner at Pensi Pasta and the neighboring vendors at the farmers market. It's as easy as boiling water and heating up a sauce.” Fresh pasta takes about four minutes to cook, ravioli about five or six minutes. Evette sells about 100 pounds of fresh pasta on an average day at the farmers market!

Pensi Pasta, which means “Think Pasta” in Italian, is the only business in the area that makes fresh pasta shapes including large and small rigatoni, shells and ziti. These are made from an extruder, which can be a finicky machine. When asked about the biggest challenge of her business, Evette said it is keeping the seven different machines running. The machines operate six to seven hours a day. Evette, who works about 50 hours a week, has six employees who cook, run the pasta machines or sell at the farmers markets. You may see her two other helpers at the markets – her adorable daughters who you can bet, already know how to cook wonderful Italian food!