History
I grew up in northern Italy in a restaurant family. I watched my chef restauranteur stepfather work in the kitchen and on the floor since I was 10 years old. We all cooked at home and had the most extraordinary experiences with ingredients grown in our backyard. In 1980 he was nominated top chef in Italy. When I came to California in 1991 I quickly gravitated towards the restaurant business and worked in Italian restaurants ever since. Living in Santa Monica and experiencing the Farmers Market moved me to start Orto (Italian for