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“It’s a variety of
thyme that grows wild in Tuscany,” says Patrizio Siddu, on why
he named his Manhattan restaurant Pepolino. “I have been
dreaming of opening my own restaurant since I was 15 and first
fell in love with cooking, and I wanted the name of my
restaurant to reflect my cooking style – pepolino is my favorite
herb.”
After graduating
from culinary school, Florentine-born Patrizio got his hands-on
start in the food business cooking got famous Italian designers
of fashion shows. He then continued on at Cibreo, one of
Florence’s most renowned restaurants, and at the Michelin
one-star Cantina Barbagianni. In 1995, Patrizio moved to New
York and began working at Savore, then at Pier 59 Studios at
Chelsea Piers. In August 1999, he and Enzo Pezone opened
Pepolino, where they have been thrilling restaurant patrons with
their elegant Tuscan cuisine ever since.
Enzo Pezone was
born in Naples, Italy. At age 15 he picked up and moved to
Florence, where he started in training in the culinary arts.
After a five-year education, he was hired by Fabio Picchi and
Benedetta Vitali of Cibreo restaurant in Florence, where he
continued learning under their tutelage for 13 years. There, he
also met Patrizio. The experience helped shape his pursuit of
opening a restaurant of his own. In 1994, the dream carried him
across the Atlantic Ocean to America. Enzo worked at various
establishments for five years, learning about the American
restaurant business, before opening Pepolino restaurant in
Manhattan with Patrizio.
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