I was born in Seravezza and lived in Forte dei Marmi in the province of Lucca until the age of ten when my family set out to bring the flavors of our home to Los Angeles. While I consider LA home, my key influences come from my experiences and the vibrancy of my childhood.   

I have to thank my mother Roberta and both of my grandmothers, Cesarina and Ida, for giving me a gift that few people have received, which was allowing me to watch and participate while they cooked for our family and friends. Food and community are two concepts that are inextricably linked in Italian culture. We cook to express love and count sitting down together to share food as one of our most beloved privileges. Everyday, my mother and I would go to the open market just down the street to shop for the lunch and dinner that she would later prepare. When it was warm enough, we would take our bikes and on the way we would pass the tiny panifico on the corner of Via Piave where you could smell the baking flour and yeast long before getting there. We would always stop and buy bread – and if I was extremely lucky – I would get a small piece of focaccia to eat right there. At the open market, we would buy the fruits and vegetables that were in season. And because our town was right on the coast there was always an abundance of fish to pick from. 

My mother, originally from Piacenza in Emilia-Romagna, paired her love of homemade paste and ravioli with traditional Tuscan recipes to always create memorable meals. I have worked to recreate this style and its sensibilities at e. baldi. My dishes never boast too many ingredients or flavors. Rather, I focus on combining a few ingredients to showcase their true flavors in a distinctly creative way.

While I enjoy creating every course desserts are my ultimate passion. This is why I went to study under the legendary baker and pastry chef in Tuscany, Angelo Baldini. He taught me the history behind Tuscan desserts and how to make them. To many food critics here, Italian desserts are overlooked while to all Italians the final taste is essential and sacred.

I hope you join me to experience what I believe to be the most satisfying food to eat: true, simple Tuscan food with an accent of Emilia-Romagna. I truly love making this food for my customers and hope you will love experiencing it as much as I did as a child and still do today.