MY HISTORY
The kitchen has always been a part of me.
Sicily is a land where food is not just nourishment: it is culture, identity, a philosophy of life, a religion with no atheists. And in my family, we were all devoted believers. My father taught me the importance and value of ingredients: twice a month we would take a trip to the port of Sciacca, where fishermen auctioned off their freshly caught fish. Other times, together with his cousins, we rented a boat to catch the fish ourselves and eat it in the evening. We would go foraging for mushrooms in the woods, travel inland to taste the best cheeses and finest meats. Sundays were sacred, a true celebration of love and togetherness: everyone in the kitchen making fresh pasta, cleaning artichokes – the ones “with the cap” – and cardoons for fritters, grilling fish.
These flavors, these smells, these daily rituals, this feeling of home, this passion that moves your hands and makes your heart skip a beat – I never forgot them. They built my identity like a dish to be assembled, piece by piece, ingredient by ingredient.
And while I walked different paths – ones that at the time seemed to lead in the right direction, promising achievements and goals – my dreams stayed shut away in the kitchen drawers, waiting. While I worked in companies and built my future in other ways, they hid behind jars, peeked out from the pantry, slipped among cutlery and pans, dozed among the spices. Sometimes they watched me, whispered to each other, probably judged me. Yet I didn’t listen, or I pretended not to. U veru surdu è chiddu ca non voli sentiri (The truly deaf is the one who doesn’t want to hear).
One day I understood. I finally found the switch I had been looking for inside myself and turned on the light.
I saw them. I listened. And at 44 years old, I changed my life.
I enrolled at the Accademia del Gambero Rosso – an intense and deeply formative experience. There, I had the opportunity to specialize under the guidance and example of Michelin-starred chefs, who taught me the foundations of cooking, helped me refine my technique, recognize and select quality ingredients, appreciate raw materials, and have the courage to experiment, fueling my culinary vision.
I began working in the kitchen. First as a private chef abroad, in the Netherlands, where “Italian” has always been synonymous with taste and excellence, bringing into private homes the authentic flavors of my land, adapted for an international audience. Later, I stepped into Michelin-starred restaurant kitchens – an invaluable experience that gave me a solid foundation in organization and management.