Black and white photo of a man with a beard and short hair sitting inside a restaurant or bar, looking through a window. The background outside the window shows a parking lot with several cars and people.

Marco Gagliardi

Chef & Co-Owner

Marco Gagliardi grew up in California in a family where the kitchen was the center of the house. He found his way into professional cooking through Philadelphia, working every station at Zahav and Vetri Cucina before running the kitchen at Pizzeria Salvy. He was sous chef at Vetri Las Vegas, then sous chef at Bon Delire in San Francisco, and eventually made his way down to Los Angeles.

Along the way he collected the things that show up on every plate at Josephine: classical French sauces, whole-animal cooking, and a thread of Middle Eastern flavors he picked up in Philadelphia. Josephine is the first restaurant that's fully his, and he's in the kitchen every night.

A young man taking a selfie on a beach with waves and a partly cloudy sky in the background.

Anthony Dragotto

General Manager & Co-Owner

Anthony Dragotto is the reason you've already heard about Josephine before you've eaten here. He runs the business and he knows everyone. He's the guy who strikes up a conversation with a stranger at a coffee shop and somehow that person is making a reservation by the end of it. His gift is making people feel like they've been invited somewhere, not sold something. That energy is what fills the room every night.

Together, childhood friends and hockey teammates Marco and Anthony opened Josephine in May 2026 in a mid-century bungalow on Santa Monica Boulevard. They named it for their grandmothers.