Gianfranco Zappala
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Gianfranco is the owner and chef of Capo San Giovanni, a southern Italian style restaurant & bar with a cozy, dining room packed with guests in an unassuming downtown location. A quiet romantic outdoor patio beckons to you to dine al fresco - it seems to transport you from Cabo to a lovely Italian country villa. But that's not the focus of the story. Back to the man and his mission.
Gianfranco didn't plan his career - it seemed to have evolved around his natural ability to create gastronomic delights. Just like Martha Stewart has a knack for pulling together colors and textures to create a clever and fabulous interior design - Gianfranco adds a little of this and that to create his palate pleasing Italian dishes. His commitment to using the finest ingredients - many of them hand-picked and imported right from Italy - that's his guarantee of satisfaction. It's his stroke of luck, love of fine food and family background that combined to seem so incredibly fateful - he's definitely one of the lucky people who can make a good living doing what he absolutely loves.Gianfranco grew up in Italy, of course, watching his grandmother cook with delicious recipes she knew by heart. Napoli offered the perfect garden of rich fertile soil that nurtures luscious cherry tomatoes and herbs in the shadow of the volcano of Mt. Vesuvius. He gets excited telling you about the broccoli de rapa sautéed with garlic and extra virgin olive oil - and that it took only minutes for his grandmother to cook a feast - simple and satisfying with the vegetables and herbs from his father's garden.
Gianfranco inherited his father's love of the sea, fishing for shellfish and seafood. He recalls as a child fishing for anchovies, gutting them and eating them raw while still out on the water. He and his father hunted to supply the family with fresh caught quail, dove, pork and wild rabbit, which added variety to their seafood diet. Every part of each creature caught or hunted was used - nothing went to waste. (With the exception of a hearty soul from Maine, he's the only other person I know who will consume the entire lobster - except for the hard shell.)
Imagine another time and place far away - a time when family frequently met to eat, drink and celebrate each other, not during special occasions, but every day. When Gianfranco recalls how he made his start, it was there in Italy, catering to his family - always cooking for 8 or 15 people using the ingredients at hand. In the winter they hunted pig and processed the meat for sausages, salami, bacon and cured ham. He still makes his own sausage for diners at Capo San Giovanni. In spring, the Italian fields produce fava beans and peas so fresh sauces with garlic, onion and tomato were combined for rich tasty broth to accompany fresh caught octopus - another of his favorite dishes.
But as graduates from the CIA and Johnson & Wales need to know - What's the secret to making it big time in the restaurant industry? How do you come from a small village thousands of miles away and make your mark in Cabo?
Gianfranco's big break came when he was hired as chef for Giorgio Armani's restaurant in Beverly Hills. He broke into the U.S. market with his companion and business partner, Antonella Spinella who has worked side-by-side with Gianfranco for over a decade.
But true talent is recognized quickly in Los Angeles. Gianfranco moved on as consultant for major restaurants in Dallas, Las Vegas and Phoenix. You might say he's been responsible for everything from "soup to nuts" -- kitchen design to the menu planning, training staff and management of the restaurant.
While working in Los Angeles many of his frequent diners befriended him. They owned yachts and Cabo was a popular fishing destination. Before long Gianfranco's childhood love of fishing drew him to Cabo - along with some prodding from his loyal customers who convinced him to move and open his own restaurant in November of 1997. But that's not what launched his Cabo career. It was a twisted bit of fate that propelled him to local celebrity status.
That's where Cabo resident Luisa Cosenza comes in. At the time, she was head concierge at a popular resort in Cabo - and straight from Calabria - also fluent in Italian. And what's a girl to do when its imperative that she produce a party to wow 20 of her closest colleagues? Not only did she get advice from Gianfranco, as a favor he volunteered to cook for her guests. The residual effect of that party was astounding. For months later, Gianfranco received calls from Americans and Canadians for reservations at the restaurant and with requests to buy gift certificates for friends. Capo San Girovanni was virtually an overnight success.
The restaurant business, however, dictates that you can not rest on your laurels particularly in a growth market such as Cabo. Despite winning numerous awards for best Italian restaurant (in Mexico and South America!) Gianfranco and Antonella must still work hard to maintain quality and high standards. Fresh ingredients, vegetables and herbs are supplied from farms and fields in Todos Santos, San Jose del Cabo and Sinaloa - Sinaloa is also renown for its excellent fresh shrimp. They hand-pick their seafood and personally select and train staff to stay a cut above other restaurants. Antonella personally prepares the fresh pastry for each evening's deserts.
But if you dine at Capo San Giovanni, remember, Italian food is NOT exactly meatballs and lasagna in tomato sauce. Gianfranco's menus are influenced by Neapolitan, Sicilian and Calabrese with a hint of central northern Italian recipes. He returns each year to Tuscany, Umbria and Naples for fresh ideas. His gourmet meals are tasty, pleasant surprises. He will occasionally use an Asian infusion of ginger and teriyaki, fresh avocado, sauces made with curry, cilantro and soy in his daily special. He's also very aware of the health benefits of extra virgin olive oil and red wine. He incorporates certain methods of cooking that reduce the natural fats and add goodness to your meal.
In his personal life, if he likes you he'll use his highly prized truffle oil to prepare the meal - he'll also share with you his lemoncello made from his grandmother's recipe. (A kind of lemon grappa prepared by Antonella and proudly served at the bar in the restaurant.) He is proud to say that the chocolate used in the chocolate-cinnamon grappa, a traditional Northern Italian aperitif, is imported from Belgium. He's fond of liquorish, a natural digestion aide, which comes from a bitter, black root which he picks, washes, cleans and selects himself in Italy to import to Cabo.
Handsome, charming and single in Cabo...what's next for Gianfranco - hedonistic private parties for those wanting pampering beyond the limitations of his very public, very popular restaurant.
Meanwhile, if you're planning your trip to Cabo and need a little taste of what's in store, try this recipe at home for yourself - then visit Capo San Giovanni - and Gianfranco for a lovely, satisfying meal to remember:
Petto al Gorganzola
8 oz. Chicken breast
Lightly flour
Add to hot pan, 1 oz extra virgin oil
Cook chicken over medium heat until golden
Add 2 cloves of fresh garlic
Once garlic is cooked - add 1/2 oz cognac.
You may use a good brandy, but cognac will make a better flambé
Here's the twist from the traditional recipe, add 2 oz of whipping cream while sauce is flaming.
Then add 4 oz of chicken stock and a generous pinch of chopped fresh parsley
Re-boil and add 4 oz of gorgonzola cheese and 1/2 teaspoon of Dijon mustard
Cook uncovered until chicken is done
Add additional small amount of stock if sauce requires more liquid
You can also substitute beef filet - Gianfranco says the blood mixes with the sauce to create a nice aphrodisiac. I did say he was passionate.
Visit Gianfranco's restaurant website at: www.caposangiovanni.com