A family story:

BRINGING TRADITION FROM PUGLIA TO LONDON

You will hear people speak of spaghetti and pizza as ‘Italian’ food, without appreciating that every region of Italy has its own individual cuisine. We want you to discover the special magic of Apulian cuisine – the food of Puglia.

Puglia (in Latin, ‘Apulia’) is the beautiful southern region of Italy, and that is where Vincenzo (the owner) comes from, bringing with him the region’s unique culinary tradition and culture.

The story began in the family restaurant in San Giorgio, a small town by the sea. As a young boy, Vicenzo used to help his mother prepare the fresh pasta, and help his father wrap hot pizzas for customers to take away. By the time he was twelve, Vincenzo had become a pizza chef himself, and people were amazed to see such a young boy preparing pizzas with his father.

After many years of intense training, and with passion for his mother’s recipes, Vincenzo opened his first restaurant in Bari, where he began to explore his love for local Mediterranean dishes. He created his own, more digestible, pizza dough by using natural yeast which he made himself; and he was the first restaurateur in Bari to bring to his customers’ tables food in terracotta pots, baked in a wood-fired oven, which were traditional Apulian recipes he had learnt from his grandmother.

The restaurant did very well, and he soon opened a second restaurant with his sister, Antonella. Both restaurants are still running successfully today.

Vicenzo is passionate about his local Apulian cuisine. He has come to London to try to introduce as many people as possible to the marvellous traditional dishes of his region.

At Apulia, we use ingredients and products from Puglia, as much as possible, which are healthy and natural. We don’t rely on branded products. We use natural products with no artificial thickeners or dyes.

Vincenzo says:

“Seeing my dishes come back empty, having customers coming up to shake my hand and telling me that they had a beautiful and memorable experience, knowing that they will remember my dishes even in a year’s time, gives me the best satisfaction as a restaurateur.”