Never did she think, when moving from Virginia to New Jersey some 40 years ago, that Italian cooking would be her specialty, but that’s what happened to Cindy Roman.

Now that she has returned to the Old Dominion, and is living in Mathews, new friends, neighbors and family are enjoying the delicious culinary fare that Cindy provides and shares with all.

Cindy grew up in Denbigh and learned how to cook from her dad. “He was the greatest. Cooking was not my mother’s favorite thing to do. So Dad loved to cook and did almost all of it for the family. He could always handle guests dropping in for a meal. My mother never knew who was coming to sit at our table. My dad really gave me the love of cooking and it has been with me my entire life.”

When Cindy branched out and moved to New Jersey, she took a job in an Italian restaurant, “first as a bartender and then doing some wait servicing.” She moved into the kitchen to fill in at times and then rose to ha...