Peek inside the new Bella Vita, which is now open in old Magic Wok space
A Wichita restaurant saga that started a year ago ended happily this week.
Bella Vita Bistro owner Lory Wooley has reopened her Italian restaurant, which she closed at its original address after she said she battled mice problems for months. On Wednesday, she debuted her new space at 9506 W. Central, which for years was home to throwback Chinese restaurant Magic Wok.
Though the doors opened to the public on Wednesday, Wooley will require all dinner customers to have reservations through Saturday so that she can control pacing in the dining room.
“If I space them accordingly so that we have a nice flow, then everybody will walk out of here a happy camper,” Wooley said.
Starting on Monday, Oct. 27, walk-ins will be welcome, though Wolley recommends reservations even then.
Reservations will not be required for lunch, which the restaurant will offer from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays. At its previous address, it served lunch only on Fridays. Lunch at the new restaurant will be served a la carte, not buffet-style.
Dinner hours are 4 to 9 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays. Happy hour will last from 4 to 5:30 p.m.
Wooley has taken on a new partner at the new Bella Vita: Wichita chef Luis Pena, who helped lead the culinary arts program at Butler Community College for 3 1/2 years, served as a consultant for Wooley as she worked to reopen the restaurant.
His newly formed Grace Hospitality Group, which also includes his Marion restaurant Parlour 1886, now has an ownership stake in Bella Vita Bistro, and Pena is also serving as head chef.
Wooley and Pena will open with a menu that’s a bit different from Bella Vita’s previous menu: Though it contains many favorites, such as bruschetta, cannelloni crepes and white-sauce lasagna, the new menu is pared down and now includes five appetizers, eight pasta dishes and six entrees.
Pena has added a few things to the menu, including fried brussels sprouts on the appetizer list and Florentine steak and Tuscan salmon as entrees. The menu also includes soups as well as salads, which will still be prepared like they were at the previous address: with fresh beet and carrot curls on top.
Wooley has totally transformed the old Magic Wok space, which had one other tenant before she took over: Fusion Restaurant & Catering, which operated there from late 2022 until it closed this spring.
Wooley brought over from West Street not only her tall booths, which got a fresh coat of paint, but also her tables, chairs and artwork. She added carpet, gave the bar a makeover and put curtains in the front windows, giving the space the feel of an intimate, elegant eatery.
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A longtime restaurateur, Wooley first opened Bella Vita Bistro in 2010. She announced in mid-July that she’d have to close the restaurant because it had become infested with mice, and nothing she tried kept them completely away. She decided to reopen once she found the new spot and recruited Pena.
Wooley said she’s excited to be in a fresh space and hopes that her regulars will return. The reservations have already started coming in, she said.
“I’m relieved, I’m excited, and I’m scared... all at the same time,” she said.
Bella Vita’s new menu
This story was originally published October 21, 2025 at 5:01 AM.
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