What was your first industry job?
When I was 16, I started working for a catering service operating during international concerts in Turin.
If you weren’t in kitchens, what would you do?
I’d probably be a tailor. I’ve always loved fashion and tailoring, and I’d love to be making men’s suits and clothing.
What industry figure do you most admire?
Clare Smyth – I love her attention to detail and presentation style, and I’ve been following her career for a long time.
What’s your pet hate in the kitchen?
When the pass is untidy – I can’t stand it.
What’s the oddest thing a customer has said to you?
That the mussels were too fishy.
Sum up your cooking style in a single sentence…
Honest: let the ingredients speak for themselves, always with something unexpected.
What’s the worst review you’ve ever had?
From my partner’s son. Eight years old, brutally honest and completely unimpressed by anything I put in front of him.
What advice would you give someone starting out in the industry?
Make sure you have the passion, as it’s quite a tough environment. You never stop learning. Work hard and don’t take anything too personally.
Which single item of kitchen equipment could you not live without?
My tweezers and spoon.
What would you choose to eat for your last meal?
Blue cheese with a charcuterie board to start, a T-bone Fiorentina steak with roast potatoes, a bottle of chianti riserva and Nipotina’s olive oil ice cream with sea salt flakes.
À la carte or tasting menu?
À la carte.
What’s the best meal you’ve ever had in a restaurant?
Casa Benigna in Madrid – excellent service and the best hot-smoked salmon, smoked in-house.
What’s your favourite fast-food joint?
Black Bear Burger.
What’s the dish you wish you’d thought of?
Massimo Bottura’s tortellini modenesi.
MasterChef or Great British Menu?
MasterChef.
What’s the most overrated food?
Oysters.
You’re restaurant dictator for a day – what would you ban?
All condiments: mustard, ketchup, mayo.
Who would your dream dinner party guests be?
Massimo Bottura, Bad Bunny and my grandmother.
What’s your earliest food memory?
Having bolognese ragù as a kid on some toasted bread while my grandmother was cooking cannelloni for Sunday lunch.
TikTok or Instagram?
Instagram.
What’s the closest you’ve ever come to death?
When my family home in Turin was robbed at night when I was five.
Where do you go when you want to let your hair down?
By the sea – it doesn’t matter where.
What’s your tipple of choice?
A Boulevardier.
What’s your favourite food and drink pairing?
Grilled octopus with a Negroni or Boulevardier.
What do you consider to be your signature dish?
Octopus with salsa verde and dried olives from Nipotina’s menu.