Tri-Cities chef goes from life support in COVID ward to opening 2 new eateries

When Jessie Ayala checked into the hospital with COVID-19 in early October the prognosis was grim.

As he was being put on life support, doctors were telling his wife Susanne that he might not make it.

Now, nearly a year after facing a nearly-fatal case of the disease, the co-owner of a popular Tri-Cities food truck, the Ciao Wagon, is getting ready to open two new restaurants.

“From where we were almost a year ago to now, we didn’t think it would be possible to do this turn around to open two additional restaurants,” Susanne Ayala told the Herald.

Her husband, then 50, endured a two-month stay in the hospital and experimental treatments in Portland before finally becoming well enough to be released and continue his recovery at home.

“It is better and better every month,” she said of his long-term effects. “He still has fatigue and anxiety.”

But Jessie Ayala’s passion for food and cooking beat out any lingering COVID symptoms, and he’s back in the kitchen.

Next steps

The couple are opening Ciao Trattoria in downtown Pasco later this month and Ciao Kitchen will be among the first to open in the new Osprey Pointe Marketplace when it’s finished next spring or summer.

The former owners of Tuscany Rustic Italian Bistro in Prosser are not newcomers to the food business.

They have been operating the Ciao Wagon since 2019. They park at various venues throughout the Tri-Cities, but catering accounts for about 70 percent of their business.

“We’ve known for a while we wanted to do full service,” Susanne Ayala said.

Ciao Trattoria will be on 112 N. Fourth Ave. just down from Viera’s Bakery and will focus on a grab-and-go menu featuring favorites from the food trailer.

The eatery will be casual with a retro mid-century vibe with a twist, and feature a menu anchored with customer favorite, lemon pasta, as well as other pastas, sandwiches, salads and flatbreads.

They also are adding beer, wine and prosecco cocktails and a small lounge where folks can chill out for a bit.

And the Ayalas are expanding their workforce.

“One thing I can say about (Jessie) getting COVID and me basically running biz by myself while he was recovering, is that we learned the art of delegation,” she said. “We put people we trust in key places.”

They’ve hired longtime Pasco market manager Oscar Martinez to train on their trade secrets and manage the downtown location. Jessie Ayala will continue to oversee all the operations but won’t take it all on himself.

After the downtown location opens up, their next focus will be Osprey Pointe.

Osprey Pointe developer James Sexton of JMS Construction said he’s excited to see the Ayalas bring their cooking to the Market at Osprey Pointe. He said there are others restaurants and vendors coming to the market but no contracts have been signed.

“They presented us with a vision for space and long term what that will look like,” Susanne Ayala said of JMS Construction. “They’ve been so great to work with.”

JMS has been working with them on kitchen designs. Already, a menu is in the making for the restaurant that will have a full bar and outdoor seating overlooking an amphitheater.

Expect to see more protein-based dishes with a few pasta and sandwich options — and the signature lemon pasta stays.

A charcuterie station will be a first — much like a gourmet buffet but where cured meats are cut to order and the boards are made to diners’ preferences.

Ayala said that they have been met with skepticism at planning to open in an area not yet built up. The Osprey Pointe planned community is expected to eventually have housing, mixed-use commercial sites, entertainment and recreation.

“We’ve spent the last 10 years building clientele,” she said. “They will follow us everywhere.”

Online: theciaowagon.com; Facebook, Tiktok