When tourists as well as locals ask about Italian food, one of the restaurants they are directed to is San Remo Italian Bistro.
Located on a corner block on St. Albert’s Perron St., it attracts well-styled young and middle-aged professionals as well as a smattering of casual clientele and families.
The rectangular space, outfitted with an elegant yet cosy ambience, offers a modern spin from the classic old world.
Paintings dot the walls while plush booths and tables covered with black tablecloths offset with sparkling wine glasses invite visitors for a sit-down.
Although the ambience is delightfully inviting, it’s the melt-in-your-mouth, savoury food that has attracted diners for six years.
The man partly responsible for St. Albert’s love affair with Italian cuisine is Federico Innocenti. More than anything, the 26-year-old head cook is passionate about creating a cuisine that keeps the flavours of Italy alive.
“I try to cook something I like. I don’t necessarily follow the rules. I do it the way I want. I try to be myself and I try to express myself through cooking,” said Innocenti whose specialty is pasta.
“I love carbs. Pasta is something you can change with the ingredients. Even if you use simple ingredients, you can make something amazing. It gives you infinite options.”
Conscious of producing strong visual appeal, he infuses each dish with creativity. One of his more artistic creations is Linguine alla Pescatore (Fisherman’s Linguine).
Instead of just slapping a blob of pasta on a dish and topping it with baby shrimp, mussels and clams, he twirls the linguine into three mini bird-nest shapes and artistically arranges the seafood. It’s a visual feast and a sensory delight.
Born in Rome, Innocenti was raised in Giulianova, a province of Teramo in central Italy. Once an ancient Roman colony, the coastal city on the Adriatic Sea is now a thriving tourist, commercial and fishing town.
The region’s “rustic” cuisine is renowned for its fresh garden vegetables, mushrooms and truffles, extra-virgin olive oil, lamb dishes, pasta meals, and of course seafood edibles in all their variations.
Like many middle class Italian families struggling to stay afloat, the Innocentis were quite resourceful. His father, Paolo, operated a magazine kiosk while freelancing articles for newspapers and writing thrillers on the side. His mother, Claudia, ran the household and worked at the kiosk.
“My father had a huge passion for cooking. I got it from him,” Innocenti said adding that Paolo’s specialty was cooking seafood with pasta and risotto.
While Paolo’s love of cooking rubbed off on Innocenti. As a kid he preferred playing street soccer with friends. The tall, lean sporty adolescent later went on to become a provincial high jump champion, and played high level basketball that took him to tournaments across Europe and the United States.
Although deeply committed to basketball, the politics and economics of participating eventually forced him off the field. In its place, the teenager picked up drum-sticks.
“I always had a huge passion for music. I used to listen to my dad’s vinyls. I liked rock music – Dire Straits – and heavy metal – Metallica. There was a side of me that dreamed and wanted to become a musician. But there was another part of me that knew about reality, and I started to think about the future.”
At 15, Innocenti enrolled in a three-year program at the Instituto Crocetti, a school of cooking, hospitality services and tourist services. He graduated with a tourist and hotel management certificate.
His decision to follow a trade instead of the more accepted university route was based on Italy’s unemployment rate that varies between 10 and 28 per cent on any given month.
“Back home, a lot of people go to university. We have a lot of doctors (PhDs) with no jobs. But hospitality was in high demand.”
Immediately after graduating from Instituto Crocetti, the young hopeful worked at various hotels and restaurants as a server and maître d’ all the while learning cooking methods.
One of his most invigorating memories was working as a maître d’ under Chef Roger di Pietro at Ristorante Serenella.
“In terms of cooking seafood he was the best. I saw him cook a meal with tuna he caught the night before – the appetizers, the entrée, the pasta, all of it.”
Confident in his abilities to whip up a meal for professional cooks, Innocenti marched into the kitchen one day and said, “Go out. Have your cigarettes and coffee and I’ll cook dinner. At first they thought I was joking.”
But chefs stepped aside and the eager young cook created a pasta dish with a seafood sauce. The response was positive.
“Everybody ate it. Some people didn’t even know I’d made it.”
The country’s reputation as a tourist destination produced jobs in hospitality. But many were seasonal or short-term for three or four months, a detriment to young hopefuls searching for a long-term base.
Unfortunately, finding a permanent full-time position depended more on knowing the right people than building a strong work ethic.
“I wanted stability and a family someday. I could have worked on cruise ships, but I wanted to settle down.”
In January 2013, Innocenti hooked up with a relative of Ermano Feliciani, owner of San Remo Bistro, and paid a two-week visit to Canada.
“He wasn’t your run-of-the-mill kid his age. He was more mature. We got to talking and everything fell into place,” said Feliciani.
Following his arrival in Canada in May 2013, Rafaella Feliciani, the restaurant's original head chef took him under her wing and trained him. Five years later, Rafaella, Feliciani’s mother, is retiring, and passing the kitchen’s joys and challenges to Innocenti.
Innocenti is slowly putting his signature on San Remo’s dishes. One of his latest is a steak pasta fusion dish originally created for a long-time client that came in one night and requested something different.
“I’m not closed-minded. I’m open to working with new ingredients. St. Albert has a great customer base. They are food educated and travel a lot, and I am happy to try different things,” said Innocenti.
He credits his experience in learning numerous different methods and styles for shaping his broad approach and authentic taste of Italy.
Ironically, a restaurant's biggest challenges are the unpredictable fluctuations in food prices that if unchecked can eat away at profits.
“Food prices are more unpredictable because of climate change and global warming. It’s changed the seasons. Ask any restaurateur.”
While work has its ups and downs, Innocenti has finally found the stability he craved before immigrating to Canada. He’s engaged to Cassidy, a store manager in the pet industry.
No longer does he bang away at drums. After a 10-hour shift, watching TV and going for walks with Cassidy’s dog are right up his alley. And that’s just fine with him.
Zabaione Recipe
Zabaione is a simple traditional Italian dessert made of egg yolks, sugar, and Vin Santo (or Marsala wine). It is usually served warm but it can also be served cold.Ingredients:
- 8 large egg yolks
- 100 g of white sugar
- 160 ml of Vin Santo or Marsala wine
- Add the egg yolks and sugar to a large round bowl. Using an electric mixer at the highest speed, beat the eggs and sugar for approximately five minutes until the mixture is a thick, pale yellow, and the sugar is completely dissolved. Decrease the mixer speed to low and slowly add the Marsala to the mixture.
- Meanwhile, create a water bath to cook the mixture. Find a pot that covers the bottom and about one-half the sides of the bowl. Allow the bowl to fit snugly and comfortably inside without tilting to one side or the other.
- Fill the pot with a few inches of hot water and place the bowl in it. The water needs to simmer strongly but never boil. Keep whisking the mixture moving in an up-and-over motion. Monitor the water occasionally taking a peek to ensure it is not boiling. If it is, lower heat to a simmer.
- The zabaione will start to thicken after about five minutes of steady whisking. There are signs to look for that will signal it is almost done. The whisk will leave tracks in the zabaione as it moves through it, and the mixture will start to come away from the sides of the bowl. It will mound easily.
- At this point simply keep whisking. It is necessary to bring the temperature down a bit, which will help the zabaione thicken further.
- Spoon the warm mixture into custard cups or serving glasses and serve immediately or allow to cool if preferred. Serve accompanied by a couple of Savoiardi (Lady Fingers) or just top with whipping cream or fresh berries.
