By
Margaretta wa Gacheru (posted March 2, 2018)
Stephano
Rusticali, 57, spent most of his life in Italy working as an accountant and
financial consultant. He was one of the few members of his family that wasn’t
involved in the tourism and hospitality industry. But he’d always been good at
numbers and enjoyed designing business plans for others.
But when his
two sons finished school, he decided to visit his cousin Guido who had
up-market Italian restaurants in Watamu at the Kenyan Coast.
“Both
catered mainly to Italian tourists,” says Stephano who was inspired by his
cousin’s initiatives. They encouraged him to make a major life change and partner
with Guido in starting up an Italian restaurant of his own at the coast.
“The Geko
would cater to a more international clientele,” says Stephano whose background
in financial management meant the restaurant quickly turned a profit. That was
in 2014.
But then as he
saw tourism slowing at the Coast, Stephano heard about an Italian restauranteur
in Nairobi who wanted to retire and sell his business.
Stephno
frankly didn’t have the cash to buy the business flat out. But when he went to
see the place, which is just behind Valley Arcade in Nairobi, he liked what he
saw. He felt it had immense potential although he’d want to make some major
modifications.
“Guido agreed
to partner with me. Plus we had been working with another Italian, a top chef
who agreed to come in on the business as well,” says Stephano who made a deal
with the outgoing owner. “He’s letting us rent the business for the first two
years, after which we will buy the restaurant outright,” he adds.
In the
meantime, Guido’s agreed to take over management of the Geko. “Although I go to
check the books twice a month,” says Stephano who knows his biggest asset to
the business is his financial managerial skills.
Once he took
charge of the restaurant he renamed La Salumeria, he decided the best way to
distinguish his place from other Italian eateries in town was to only serve
foods that are authentically Italian.
“The name
‘La Salumeria’ itself is an Italian word referring to a shop that sells all
sorts of Italian cheeses, cured meats and other specialty foods essential to
preparing authentic Italian dishes, the kind you find at my restaurant” he
tells Business Daily.
Pointing to
the condiments on one table for four, he notes that the salt came from a city
in Sicily, the olive oil from Tuscany and the Balsamic vinegar from Modina.
What’s more, everything from the cheeses and sausages to the wines and assorted
spices are flown in directly from Milan. Even the paintings on the wall, the
music and the hanging hand-painted glass lampshades are Italian. Even his
espresso machine and the macchiatos and cappuccinos that he brews with it come
from Italy.
Stephano says
the other important factor that ensures authenticity of La Salumeria’s food is
Top Chief Murielle Minchella who’s taught all his Kenyan staff how to prepare fine
Italian pizza, pasta and pastries for his guests. Plus he just recently brought
in a top Sicilian chef who taught his staff special Sicilian recipes so that
now La Salumeria has a new Sicilian menu with a whole new set of Italian dishes.
That includes the Caprese chocolate and almond cake which again is made with all
Italian Ingredients.
That close attention
to creating a total Italian eating and cultural experience is paying off for
Stephano who admits it wasn’t easy at the outset, especially since nobody knew
the restaurant had a new owner, new menu and totally new ambience. But gradually,
news has gone round that there’s a newly renovated and authentically Italian
restaurant in town.
Stephano
admits he sources all his fresh fruits and vegetables locally, and he gets his
fish flown in regularly from the coast.
But his
Italian cheeses are flown in once a week from Milan. But since none of them
contain preservatives and he only serves the freshest of foods, Stephano he offers
his cheeses for just a few days every week. After that, one has to wait till
early the following week to get the burrita especially.
The other reason
La Salumeria is doing well, despite only having taken over the business in 2016
is that the accountant in him has never stopped keeping a close track of the
accounts. This he says is key to running any successful business.
AUTHENTICALLY
ITALIAN
By
Margaretta wa Gacheru (posted 2 March 2018)
Stephano
Rusticali comes from a family fully involved in the tourism industry in Kenya.
His cousin Guido Bertoni has one Italian restaurant and one boutique hotel in
Watamu which cater mainly to Italian tourists coming from overseas.
An
accountant by training, Stephano had only worked in Europe until 2013 when
Guido encouraged him to come to Kenya and start up an Italian restaurant and
hotel of his own.
Thus, the
Geko Resort was born in 2014. Taking Guido’s boutique hotel as a model,
Stephano says he aimed to cater for more of an international clientele than his
cousin’s. And having been a business consultant most of his life, he got the
Geko up and running in no time.
But as
Stephano’s two sons are now grown men, he’s been enjoying his freedom and was
keen to branch out a bit. An Italian friend who has a wine shop in Kilimani told
him about an Italian restaurant in Nairobi that might be coming up for sale since
the owner wanted to retire. Stephano was curious, and now he’s rented and
renovated the place with a view to buying it in two years’ time.
Situated
just behind Valley Arcade in the Dhanjay Flats, Stephano opened La Salumeria in
2016. Intent on making it the most authentic Italian eatery in Nairobi, his
main marketing point for distinguishing his place from the rest is the authenticity
of both the food and the Italian ambience of his new place.
‘Everything
in the restaurant is Italian, from the paintings on the walls to the music in
the background to the menu which has an extensive variety of dishes freshly
prepared.
“We don’t
only serve pasta and pizza,” says Stephano who nonetheless is proud of
everything his kitchen prepares. “We also serve various meats [beef, lamb, pork
and fish] and we also have a brand new Sicilian menu.”
Yet Stephano
admits it’s not cheap to bring in whole containers full of Italian food-stuffs
twice a month, but it’s worth it, he says.
Clearly a
man who’s passionate about his culture as well as his cuisine, Stephano imports
everything from Italian cheeses, wines and chocolates to cured meats and porceini
mushrooms.
“We also
bring in olive oil from Tuscany, Balsamic vinegar from Modina and even salt
from Sicily,” he adds.
Having a
professional background in finance has helped his business grow more quickly
than many start-up firms could hope. “But I have experience keeping watch over
the finances as well as on the incoming supplies,” he says.
It also
helps to have Italian friends in Nairobi as well as at the Coast since they helped
him find a reliable local farm to provide all the organic vegetables he
requires every week. “I also get my fish flown in regularly from the Coast.”
But as
important as are the Italian food stuffs, Stephano says food preparation is also
key to La Sulermia’s success. He admits he’s fortunate to have as his business
partner Murielle Minchella who’s a Top Chef.
“I’ve known
Murielle since I first came to the Coast in 2013, and I’m happy she agreed to
come to Nairobi where she’s trained our entire kitchen staff in the fine points
of Italian cooking.”
Just
recently, Stephano also brought a top chef from Sicily to train his staff in
Sicilian cooking. For instance, his pastry chef Margaret was shown how to make
a Caprese cake with chocolate and almonds from Sicily.
“Margaret
also makes our almond and hazelnut parfaits, as well as the chocolate mousse,”
her boss explains as he introduces us Margaret, a lady who’s been making
Italian pastries for the past decade, having she worked under the previous
management.
One other
critical feature of La Salumeria is its brand new expresso making machine which
Stephano says is the finest one made in Italy. And as Italian coffee is
considered some of the best in the world, Stephano doesn’t regret making the
investment since every Italian meal must culminate with a cup of espresso or
cappuccino.
“But we also
make limoncello in our kitchen from imported lemon rind,” he says, knowing that
few if any other Italian restaurant in town can boast of making their own lemon
liqueur.
The crowning
feature to Stephano’s Italian showcase is his new Artistest Gallery which just
opened December 20th 2017. “Currently the photography of Gian Paolo
Tomasi is here. But in future we hope to see Kenyan artists exhibiting in the
gallery as well.”
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