In the days leading up to the launch of Alta Via, big Burrito Restaurant Group’s foray into Italian food, President and Corporate Chef Bill Fuller left the front door unlocked, giving hungry passersby false hope that they could snag a table at the long-awaited eatery. “They’d come in to ask if we were open and I had to break their hearts,” Fuller says.

The spot, located in Fox Chapel Plaza in O’Hara Township, officially opens today — April Fool’s Day — no joke. Inspired by life in both the Italian Alps and Northern California, the menu focuses on modern Italian fare such as pasta, seafood and vegetable-forward appetizers and entrees made over an open, wood-fired grill.