Marco Giannasi, the man who restored and ran The Battlefield Rest in Glasgow’s Southside until he sold it last year, has compiled a great book featuring the stories of some of Glasgow’s best-known restaurateurs and chefs. Although it was Marco’s idea, he was helped on the journey by writer Alex Meikle.
Marco and I caught up at The Anchor Line, not long after an operation, which although successful is inhibiting him from driving, doing his martial arts and generally speeding around. But not for long I hope. Says he, “It is incredibly frustrating, and I feel like a schoolboy because my wife Yellena is trying to stop me overworking and tells me what I can’t do!”
Don’t waste time getting old – anything is possible
To be honest there seems to be little that Marco can’t do. His philosophy is ‘Don’t waste time getting old – anything is possible’, and he doesn’t just talk the talk, he walks it. Six years ago, at the tender age of 64, he returned to martial arts, having enjoyed it in his youth, and he is now a Black Belt at Kuk Sool Won. He also writes poetry, and despite retiring from The Battlefield Rest he still has a Bistro leased out on the Isle of Skye.
I asked him what inspired him to do the book. He explains, “I had always been known as the owner of the Battlefield Rest and when I decided to sell it, I detached myself from it. Then I felt like I had become anonymous, so I decided to recreate myself so that I still had an identity. It’s not in my nature just to go for a coffee every day and say hello to the same people.
“I thought about creating something that could be shared with the public, not just for now, but for the future too. The book would be a record of the restaurateurs who exist now in the Glasgow restaurant scene.
“People starting in the trade today think they have invented the wheel, but they haven’t. I wanted to showcase people who have been well-respected by their peers for years. Having been in the industry for 50 years I relied on my gut feeling to select them because I knew how important they all were to the Glasgow hospitality industry, even if I didn’t know them all personally.
“I also didn’t want to do a recipe book, I wanted to look at the well-known restaurants and write about the people behind them. It is fine to walk into a place, and have a lovely meal and walk out, but I wanted to give people an insight into the person behind the establishment.”
Italian businesses whose family names resonate in the city
Featuring in the book are many Italian businesses whose family names resonate in the city – the likes of the Coia’s, Celino’s, Crolla’s, Eusebi’s, Sarti’s, and owners including Stefano Giovanazzi, Michele Pagliocca, Chris Martinolli and Mario Gizzi. But he also included respected restaurateurs including Seamas Macinnes of Cafe Gandolfi, Ryan James from the Buttery, Peter Mckenna of The Gannet, Graeme Cheevers or Executives Chefs from Cameron House & Six by Nico and others .
Marco comments, “Although it feels like their restaurants have been there forever, I wanted to know about how they started. Everyone in the book is so talented and so nice and of course the successful Mario Gizzi. I had always heard of him but appreciated him so much more when I met him face to face. In fact, he showed me around Barolo Grill, which was formerly L’ariosto, which my father opened in 1970 and which I took over in 1973 and ran until 1982.”
To begin with, Marco contacted all the restaurateurs he thought would be right for the book to explain the project. He says, ‘Right away I saw people were interested. I then did my first interviews which were recorded and then transcribed for the book by editor Alec Meikle who placed all the stories. Alex was a customer of mine at the Battlefield Rest – and is a crime writer who has written Deception Road and in the process to launch his second book in October. He had also written some local community books and agreed to collaborate with me on it.”
One person’s story that is not in the book is his own! His father, Luigi, who was born in Scotland in 1926, opened Glasgow’s first Italian restaurant Canasta in Parliamentary Road in the late 50’s before designing and opening L’ariosto in Mitchell Street in 1972. Says Marco, “My father was originally a surveyor and was very talented.” When the 140-cover restaurant opened it quickly became the place to be seen. It was known as the home of the Italian dinner dance with live music most nights. Marco at the time was studying architecture and design at the art school Lucca in Italy, when his father came over for a holiday and was diagnosed with cancer.
The son of Luigi
Says Marco, “He never returned to Scotland. I was 18 and hadn’t planned to come into hospitality. But I had to come over to Scotland and run the restaurant with my mother who was a dressmaker. Initially, I had planned to continue my studies at the School of Art, but the business was the priority. I also hardly spoke English as I hadn’t been brought up in Glasgow. It wasn’t easy for myself and my mother. We had to learn on the job.”
Marco reminisces, “Back then L’ariosto was a real experience – we served Crepe Suzette at the table, and then if you wanted to make a phone call, we would bring the phone to you at the table.” Eight years later he sold the business. Says Marco, “At L’ariosto I was always known as the son of Luigi, and I felt I had to move on and to prove that I could create a business by myself and succeed, to keep my father’s legacy alive. It was the right time to sell and to move on.”
Over the following years, he bought and restored The Pirn Inn in Balfron, opened Toscana in Milngavie, had a unit at the Garden Festival and also worked at the 39 Steps and The Maltman in Glasgow for the Waterson family and then for the Crolla brothers as a Manager.
The Battlefield Rest: I love this building
Says Marco, “I loved working for someone else. I saw a completely different side of the business and I was a lot freer and could sleep at night.” It was his love of architecture that saw him buy the Battlefield Rest.
He explains, “I have always been attracted by the restoration of buildings and it was a ruin. My first thought was ‘I love this building’, then I thought ‘what will we do with it?” In 1992 he purchased the building from the council for £1 – and opened it two years later with business partner Joe Moretti who retired from the business in 2007. And just a couple of years ago he continued the Glasgow landmarks restoration with a £200K spend.
He also tells me he managed to hang on to his chef Marino for 30 years, which was amazing due to the size of the Battlefield kitchen. Says Marco, ‘I think there are cells bigger!” He tells me, “We once had a power cut and all the gas went out. So, I borrowed a couple of camping stoves from neighbours and Marino decided to serve just one dish. We lit the kitchen and the restaurant with candles and told our customers that there was only Carbonara on offer – we did about 50 covers, and we got lots of publicity – then Health and Safety called me – thankfully by that time the power was back on.”
He sold the business to a member of staff Alex Matheson, who had worked at the restaurant for around nine years, although Marco and his wife Yellena continue to own the historic building. In fact, the restaurant was the location of the book launch last month and the good and great of the Glasgow restaurant scene gathered for a few drinks and to catch up.
With 50 years of experience under his belt, I asked him what his views were on the changes in hospitality. Marco says, “I think a big change for me is that service is not as complete now as it once was. There is a lack of planning, and everybody appears to be a bit robotic. It’s certainly not as personalised as it once was. I think it was more of a profession years ago and staff were more dedicated and prouder of what they did.”
Scottish influence on cuisine biggest revelation
He continues, “Food however has developed massively. The Scottish influence on cuisine has been the biggest revelation and the way that Scottish producers have developed Scottish products is to be applauded. I also admire the way Scottish chefs are expressing themselves.
In the ‘60s/70s, we (Italians) thought we were the only ones that could cook here. We couldn’t have imagined the quality and energy of the Scottish chefs that I see now. Back then Scottish cuisine was all mince and tatties and no seasoning. “I do think some Italian operators perhaps sat on their laurels a wee bit. Scottish chefs are now a force to be reckoned with. I admire them massively.”
Many of the people that Marco admires are in his book and he is delighted. “I am very honoured to have such respect from all of them. I think of chefs as being like ‘conductors in the kitchen’ – they create the music that people eat. That’s why I thought it would be nice to find out more about them too.
“I became more confident as I went along. I could see people were willing to share their stories from the beginning. However, I also asked them what their favourite comfort food was, what they liked to drink and what advice they had for people coming into the industry.
The biggest storytellers
“I would like to think that the book gives an insight to young people who want to pursue a career in hospitality.” He adds, “I am not a good reader – I like short stories that get to the point. That’s why we have kept the stories in the book to about 10 pages and it gives people a flavour of the businesses and the personalities.
“The biggest storytellers were Ferrier Richardson, Guy Cowan and Michele Pagliocca. Michele told the story of partying with top footballers at Loch Lomond, including Gazza. They went for a sail but forgot to unhook the anchor and took the pier away from the pier!
“While Ferrier has cooked for everyone including the Prince of Brunei. They were all good storytellers and I hope people enjoy reading their stories.”
“My own favourite story was when I drove from the Pirn Inn to take a customer, who had too much to drink, home. He asked the customer to show him where he stayed and then left him at the door. Unfortunately, it was not his house, and I had an irate villager on the phone the next morning saying I had dumped a drunk at her door!”
A labour of love
There are certainly lots of great stories in the book – it is worth a read whether you are in hospitality or not. The book was not done as a commercial venture, it was a labour of love. It is available in all the participating restaurants and on Amazon. Sales are also raising money for the Beatson Cancer Charity.
I asked Marco what was next on his agenda and he said, “I would love to do something on old menus. I like doing research and finding out the history. I may also interview people in different cities.
“I do most of the things for my daughters, Marisa and Chiara and my wife Yellena. I want them to think that I am doing something nice to keep their reputation up and I am trying to give them a good image of what I have achieved. I believe that all good operators in our industry regard their reputation as the most important tool of the trade to succeed.” I don’t think there is any fear of that. I am in no doubt that they are very proud of their dad.
is available now on Amazon here and at restaurants including Celino’s, Coia’s, The Gannet, Cafe Gandolfi and many more and online here (www.dining-tales.co.uk)