PASTRY
“LIVE” FROM NEW YORK CITY Happiness is a family and three shops It looks like the title of a film, but it is the story of BIAGIO SETTEPANI who, with his wife Pina and their three children, have made a life for themselves in New York City To talk about Biagio Settepani and his family is always a pleasure. And not just because they are close friends, but mainly because it means telling the story of a growing success, a real passion and a big heart. The story begins in Sicily, specifically in Ventimiglia di Palermo, where Biagio set off for the first time to New York with his twin brother Antonino and his parents. About this first phase, much useful information can be found in the second edition of "Sweet Sensations of Sicily", edited by Salvatore Farina, with pictures by Giancarlo Bononi, for Lussografica (For orders, chef7Bread@aol.com). The family is the starting point of this article because Biagio, with professionalism and passion (in addition to numerous awards), owes much to both his family of origin and to the one he has created with his wife Pina. Together and literally step by step, they "conquered" their America, today boasting three very well established shops: Bruno Bakery in La Guardia Place (in Manhattan), about 130 m2, of which 100 are dedicated to sales, a laboratory of 120 m2 and another 90 m2 warehouse with 20 employees; on Staten Island, there is Pasticceria Bruno Bakery & Restaurant in Forest Avenue (280 m2 total, of which 170 for a pastry and cuisine laboratory, and 35 employees); and Pasticceria Bruno on Hylan Boulevard, with over 600 m2 and 40 employees. It is teamwork all the way: first the
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parents and Antonino, then Pina, a woman of great altruism and kindness (qualities that are common to her husband), who never has enough to give. And then there are three children: Salvatore, 25, grew up in his father's laboratory, did an internship with Biasetto in Padua, and now leads the pastry shop on Hylan Blvd; Fina spends her spare time (she recently graduated in marketing) in the other large shop on Staten Island, because she is very good with customers and with training assistants. And the ‘little one’ (so to speak, given that he is 17 years old) of the family, Joseph, has just left for the prestigious Culinary Institute of America (a university his brother studied at) and is quite happy to lend a hand in the laboratory, despite his football prowess. Settepani's pastry making combines Italian tradition with American (and a touch of French), a colourful mix of cultures lived and loved, which lead to an offering of cakes (from tiramisu to the keylime tart with lime cream and pastry), cookies (from Lenten cookies to "diet" ones with chocolate and cherries), single portions, frozen desserts, muffins, jams, bakery products and savoury pastries. But it is the mignons that best express this mix of cultures and techniques that go far beyond the Italy-USA tandem: about twenty mignons and forty single portions, numbers that make them unique in the area; the favourite is the chocolate mousse.
2011 - www.pasticceriainternazionale.com - n. 18