Mario Carbone Reflects on Turning Thompson Street Into a Stage for Culinary Storytelling

Mario Carbone, co-founder of Major Food Group, explained how his eponymous Greenwich Village flagship transformed hospitality into narrative-driven theater, positioning the team as storytellers and entrepreneurial stewards of Thompson Street.
Opening in 2013 at 181 Thompson Street in the historic space formerly home to the 90-year-old Rocco Restaurant, Carbone was built around honoring mid-century Italian-American heritage while elevating it through immersive dining.
The restaurant approached hospitality like a stage production—pairing Zac Posen-designed tuxedos on captains, curated mid-century art, and theatrical tableside service with classic red-sauce dishes to create a transportive, high-energy dining brand.