Growing Up In Tuscan
Born and raised in Pistoia, Italy, Alessio Giannuzzi grew up on his family’s farm less than 50 kilometers from Florence. The oldest of four children, Alessio helped tend the family’s olive trees, Sangiovese vineyards and countless farm animals. Young Alessio spent most summers in Puglia helping out at his uncle’s gelateria, a young boy’s dream summer job if ever there was one. Alessio graduated from the prestigious Instituto Alberghiero di Montecantini Terme at age 17. After the required military service, he felt ready to be a chef – and his parents were first in line to hire him. The Giannuzzis opened a pizzeria on the Tuscan seaside in tiny Forte di Marmi where Alessio and his brother manned the ovens. During the off-season, Alessio honed his skills at the world famous Grand Hotel La Pace in Montecatini. Vacationing Italian chefs who had worked in the United States quickly noticed this young talent. Alessio was recruited to Raffaello’s, a tiny yet renowned Italian restaurant in Carmel-by-the-Sea, California.
