North Bend Theatre patrons to get Italian food options

Published 1:30 pm Friday, March 13, 2026

Theatergoers can expect expanded snack options at the historic North Bend Theatre, as its owners have purchased the neighboring Italian restaurant.

The Burrows family — husband and wife Kevin and Beth, along with their son, Sam — closed on the purchase of the restaurant in mid-February. Aside from the name (it’s now called Paisan Ristorante), they have no plans to change the restaurant, but they do hope to incorporate it in future theater endeavors.

“We were noticing the trends in the theater industry toward dine-in,” Beth said. “Well, this [theater] is historic, so there’s no dine-in. And a lot of times the food that you get at a theater is not very good. So we wanted to find a way to provide really good food for our theater patrons.”

The Burrows retained the restaurant’s staff, including its chef, who is the son-in-law of original owner Gianfranco Bafaro.

Bafaro and his family have a long history of restaurant ownership, and this downtown North Bend spot has become a favorite of locals and visitors alike.

“Everyone is wishing us well. That’s been the overwhelming sentiment,” Beth said. “And they’ll say, ‘Don’t change the food.’ We’ll say, ‘We don’t plan to. Why mess with success?’”

Rather than make change, the Burrowses only have plans to add.

They are currently working with the restaurant’s chef to craft specialty menu items that are equally delicious, but easier to eat in a theater setting, like handheld calzones and pasta cups. Moviegoers will be able to pre-order food and have it ready for them before the movie.

“We don’t want to interrupt the movie with service. We want to preserve the movie experience for everybody. And those who choose to have the best food in the Valley can pre-order it,” Beth said with a smile.

The task of deciding how to integrate the two businesses has been fun for the family, allowing them, as well as the restaurant staff, to flex their creative muscles.

“It’s definitely rejuvenating,” Beth said. “What can we do now?”

The addition of food items to the theater should be ready in a few months. In the meantime, customers are easily able to dine at the restaurant before or after enjoying a show next door.

An Italian restaurant and a movie theater may seem an unlikely pair, but at their core, the two businesses share values most important to the Burrowses: hospitality and a great customer experience.

The purchase also aligns with their overall goal of keeping the theater alive. While they do not want to be known as a dine-in theater — a name that can carry a negative connotation, Sam said — they want to offer new experiences that will keep people coming back.

“First and foremost, I want to be a community anchor,” Beth said. “We’re going to be 85 in April — always a single-screen, family-owned movie theater. We want that to continue for the next 100 years, so we’re here to make sure that happens.”