In the documentary series Stefano presented in six episodes on the Vrai platform, we discover the hectic daily life of chef, restaurateur and entrepreneur Stefano Faita. He owns four restaurants, runs a growing food business where he sells sauces, pastes and oils, and is also the father of three children.
From the first episode, we are immersed in Little Italy in Montreal, which is the headquarters of Stefano and his entire family. There is his wife, actress Isabelle Lemme, their three children, Emilia, Anna and Dario, there is also Elena, Stefano’s mother, who is in charge of the Dante hardware store, and who passed on to him her passion for pasta and all Italian specialities.
“Little Italy is part of our DNA. It’s so pleasant, we do everything on foot, there is the Jean-Talon market next door, and to be able to build my business here, in my neighborhood, it’s extraordinary,” says Stefano Faita, whom we met in his restaurant Impasto. “My father is Italian, my grandfather arrived almost at the same time as Elena’s parents, we had our first daughter in the apartment just above the Dante hardware store, we bought our house next door, we couldn’t be anywhere else! says Isabelle Lemme, spouse of Stefano, who also works in the company.
The series begins when the family moves into a small apartment as major renovations begin in their home. At the same time, Stefano manages the new menu of the Vesta restaurant, tastes new dishes, tests spicy olive oils with his partner Michele Forgione, and at the same time, we follow him on the trip he undertakes with his mother in Italy. They visit the family of his late father, the reunion is full of emotions, we remember good memories, we cook, we make polenta, and we open a bottle of wine.
What we like about this docureality is obviously Stefano Faita, a hyperactive and good-natured person who is endearing, just like the other members of his family, all very warm. A trip to Italy is always a good idea, on television, especially when it has educational virtues, we find ourselves in Sicily, where we are shown all the stages of olive oil production. It’s beautiful, it’s good and exotic, and it ends in the kitchen with the nonna (grandmother) who gives us the secret of her Sicilian pesto recipe.
“I was able to go and meet my olive oil producers for the first time, it’s important to know the people I do business with. Behind every product there is a story, and often family businesses like us,” he says.
With this series, Stefano Faita also wants to show that it is important to be well surrounded.
“Whether it’s immediate family or work family, I have people around me who I trust, employees who have become friends, who have been there for a long time. We also see that life is full of challenges, that everything is not always rosy, you have to work hard, but it is together, as a team, that we will succeed! “, he launches.
Family is most important to him. “The whole family lives in the neighborhood, on Sundays we meet as often as possible, we have dinner together, we all talk around the table,” he says. The question that always comes up? It’s the Dante hardware store: who will take care of it when Elena, her mother, wants to retire? “My mother is happy to work, she is alone, my father is dead, so she is happy to see people, to chat with her customers, her friends, but it would be nice if she slowed down a bit, but the hardware store, we have to take care of it… We want it to stay in the family, but it’s work…”, admits Stefano Faita.
“I’ve been with Stefano for 17 years and he’s had this same discussion with his mother for 17 years and it’s still not resolved! says Isabelle Lemme. Another thing that remains unresolved is their marriage! “I asked for her in 2019, there was the pandemic and after that there were so many things… We were thinking of getting married this summer, but with the house being renovated, we pushed back again… That will be coming soon! confirms Stefano Faita.
