L'Italo-Americano

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 21 2023 www.italoamericano.org 32 L'Italo-Americano A chef, a business owner, an au- thor, and, of course, a piz- zaiolo. Tony Gemignami can and does wear many hats, yet his pas- sion for food, dedication to work, and commitment to quality all come from his Ital- ian roots. Gemignani was born in F r e m o n t , C a l i f o r n i a , a n d grew up on his family's farm. He is a third-generation Ital- ian American. His career as a pizza tosser started as a way to entertain customers and to show the quality of the dough to diners. Then, it went on to become much more than a form of entertainment: Tony mastered his skills and com- peted all over the world, win- ning eight world champion titles for pizza acrobatics across 12 years, and earning himself the nickname of the " M i c h a e l J o r d a n o f P i z z a Throwing." G e m i g n a n i f o r m e d t h e WPC in 2005, including 60 p e o p l e w i t h t h e h i g h e s t awards in the pizza industry, all leading professionals and pioneers in the industry. In 2021, his pizzeria made it to the list of the 50 Top pizzerias in the world and, a year later, he was elected Pizza Maker of the Year, and official US Ambassador of Neapolitan Pizza by the city of Naples, a prestigious title only given to three people in the world. He has authored two pizza cookbooks, including 2014's Pizza Bible and a children's b o o k c a l l e d T o n y a n d t h e Pizza Champions. 2023 marks another mile- stone for Tony: together with e s t e e m e d J u d g e C l a u d e Perass, he will be the Grand Marshal at the upcoming 155th annual Italian Heritage Parade in North Beach. How was your love for pizza born? I've always loved cooking. As a typical Italian family, my parents, my brother, and I lived with our grandpar- ents, who had a farm. I start- e d c o o k i n g w h e n I w a s young. My mother taught me how to prepare the fruits and vegetables harvested from our garden. I worked with my grandfather on the farm until I was 17. In high school, I t o o k a h o m e e c o n o m i c s course and began winning awards for my cooking. Not long after, I started working at my brother's pizzeria – Pyzano's in Castro Valley. I fell in love with it right away. Can you tell us a bit more about your family's legacy? I come from a family with a solid work ethic, from my g r a n d f a t h e r F r a n k Gemignani – an Italian, a f a r m e r , a n d t h e h a r d e s t working man I know – to my parents, who raised our fam- ily tending to a 30-acre farm i n C a l i f o r n i a . M y g r e a t - grandparents came from a town called Gombitelli near Lucca. We still have family there, also in Carrara and C a m a i o r e . I l e a r n e d t h e b a s i c s o f p i z z a f r o m m y b r o t h e r F r a n k J r . , w h o opened Pyzano's Pizzeria in Castro Valley where I got my start with pizza. Being located in North Beach brings lots of fun b u t a l s o p r e s s u r e t o r e s t a u r a n t s . P e o p l e expect authenticity as well as great taste. How do you work with these two things? North Beach is an incredi- bly tight-knit and welcoming community – I felt that from day one, as we started build- ing out Tony's. As San Fran- cisco's Little Italy, of course, the locals and tourists expect t h e b e s t o f t h e b e s t , a n d that's always what I intend to deliver. I spent years travel- i n g a n d l e a r n i n g d i r e c t l y from pizzaiolos all over the w o r l d , s o I c o u l d b r i n g authentic pizza styles from Napoli, Sicily, Detroit, St. Louis, New York, and more right here to San Francisco. I take great pride in perfecting and dedicating myself to this craft. Y o u w o n 1 3 w o r l d pizza titles and you are a n o f f i c i a l U S A m b a s - s a d o r o f N e a p o l i t a n Pizza appointed by the city of Naples. What does it mean to you and what it means for your busi- ness? It's an honor to hold these titles and represent our com- m u n i t y . T h e s e a c c o l a d e s support the authenticity of my restaurants and are a tangible affirmation of the years I have spent devoted to mastering and sharing the art of pizza. You have appeared on several shows including Good Morning America, T h e T o d a y S h o w , T h e Tonight Show with Jay Leno, and are a regular on The Food Network. How do you live with all this fame, while keeping on working on your busi- ness? I h a v e a f u l l c a l e n d a r that's for sure! But I love what I do, and you'll still find me at my restaurants almost daily. I keep myself healthy with consistent exercise and a balanced diet that's full of fruits and vegetables but also lets me indulge in pizza of course. Most importantly, I have an incredible team at my restaurants that I trust completely to hold down the fort while I'm traveling. This year San Francis- co will put you, one more t i m e , i n t h e s p o t l i g h t . However, this happens on a special day for the Italian and Italian-Amer- ican community. What was your reaction when you heard about being h o n o r e d a s t h e G r a n d Marshal? It was truly a remarkable day. I have worked during the Italian Heritage Parade for nearly 15 years and it's t h e b e s t d a y n o t o n l y f o r North Beach but also for San Francisco. I'm very proud of my Italian Heritage. It's a celebration for everyone. W h a t d o y o u e x p e c t from this year's celebra- t i o n s ? I t ' s o n e o f t h e busiest days for North Beach: any memory you w a n t t o s h a r e w i t h u s about the parade? I believe it will be one of the busiest weekends com- p a r e d t o t h e p r e v i o u s parades. North Beach has been bustling this year. Our n e i g h b o r s s u p p o r t e d t h e businesses through COVID- 19 and have continued to support us this year. Now, the tourists and customers from the Bay Area have been returning. We have pre-sold all of our tables outside at Tony's and Capo's for the parade and I am h e a r i n g t h e s a m e f r o m o t h e r r e s t a u r a n t o w n e r s . This year is going to be a big one. The month will kick off with the usual ceremony that will see the San Francisco Italian Athletic Club and Sts. Peter and Paul Church lit up in the red, white, and green tricolore. Following that, the weekend of the parade, the 105th Annual Columbus Day Bazaar will be open on Saturday and Sunday, Octo- ber 7th and 8th for food, fun, games for adults and kids, music, the Blue A n g e l s , a n d m o r e . T h e Board of Directors of the Ital- i a n H e r i t a g e P a r a d e a l s o hosts a Grand Ball on Satur- day, October 7th at the West- in St. Francisco. More events and information at https:// sfitalianheritage.org/events/ Master of pizza Tony Gemignani elected Grand Marshal at the 155th Italian Heritage Parade SERENA PERFETTO SAN FRANCISCO ITALIAN COMMUNITY Tony at the 50 Top Pizzeria Award ceremony (Photo courtesy of Tony Gemignani)

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