by Dr. Iain
Corness
If your conception of Italians is one where the men are
passionate about food, wine, art and music, then you are not far from the
mark when you look at Gabriele Roscini, the Food and Beverage manager at
the Royal Wing and Spa of the Royal Cliff Beach Resort. However, with this
young man you also have to factor in parachute jumping and enduro
motorcycles!
Gabriele was born in a small town around 40 minutes
from Rome in Central Italy. His father was in the engineering business,
while his mother stayed at home to look after Gabriele and his younger
brother. His father also had to travel overseas on business and for the
young Gabriele, this represented one of his dreams. “I tried many times
to go with him, but it was not possible.”
When he was 13 years old he began working part time in
a restaurant. “Working as a waiter is very popular. You can still go to
school and work weekends. I liked it. I had money in my pocket.” At that
very junior stage in his career, “waiting” consisted of cleaning the
tables, and serving water and bread, but it was a start.
He worked in the restaurants until he had finished
secondary school aged 17 years, but full time employment was not so easy.
There was the small matter of compulsory army service for young men, and
nobody wanted to train someone who would disappear in an army uniform
shortly afterwards. The only post that was open for him was as a builders
labourer, but he did not like it at all, so the army was not such a bad
alternative when he joined for the 12 month compulsory stint after he
turned 19. The Catering Corps was not his assignment - the parachute
regiment was. He enjoyed the jumps and enjoyed his army time.
However, back on the streets, it was back to work and
Gabriele knew by this stage that he wanted to work in restaurants. He
joined a 4 star Michelin restaurant in his home town. “There I got a
chance to really learn the business, learning on the job.” He spent two
and a half years there, rising to the position as head waiter, a post that
was full of responsibility for a young man. “After me there was only the
general manager!” Gabriele recounted, smiling and laughing, while waving
his hands around with that typical Italian effervescence.
In a move which showed a long term commitment to his
future in someone so young, he decided that he should get out of Italy.
“I thought it was time to go overseas. I needed more languages and
experience. It is nice to have a viewpoint on things outside of Italy.”
He went to London, but immediately had a problem. He
could speak very little English and in desperation took a job as a head
waiter with an Italian restaurant chain. Everyone there spoke Italian, but
that was not helping him become fluent in English. He moved to a French
cuisine restaurant with a British owner. He could now start to learn the
lingo, but this came at a high price - he had to go back to cleaning the
tables, serving water and bread. “I worked hard and after two months
moved up to take the orders. Then after three months I was made assistant
manager of the private rooms, organizing parties for the VIP’s.”
After 12 months, he could now speak reasonable English,
but he felt that it was again time to further his education. He changed
employment to work in a large private club in London which specialised in
wines and champagne. “I wanted to learn about wines. I was still
thinking of myself as a waiter and I wanted to be a ‘complete’ waiter.
This was why I chose that club.”
Now with a ‘rounder’ experience, he made contact
with a restaurant in Bermuda and went there to be the restaurant manager.
“Bermuda’s a nice place, but it’s very small. You know everything
about the place in one week, but it’s a good place for a holiday.”
Still on the quest for travel and experience, he became
interested in Asia, after listening to friends who had frequently come to
Thailand. There was an opening for a restaurant manager in Phuket, so he
applied. For ‘international’ and very mobile people in the hospitality
industry, it is quite normal for the interviews to be done on the phone,
and he was sent a contract, arriving in Thailand almost three years ago.
This time relocation brought culture shock. “I was
expecting something more like Bermuda. On the way from the Phuket airport
I saw all these strange roadside markets. I’d never seen anything like
that before!” He also found that working with the local people was very
much different - but in a positive sense. “In Bermuda the (local) people
are so lazy, and the government allows them to be that way. In Thailand,
the respect you get (from the local people) really impresses me.”
After two years in Phuket the chance to move into the
Food and Beverage side of the business came up here in Pattaya. “This
was a big challenge. I am proud of what I am doing. In a hotel like this
(the Royal Wing and Spa), you can’t ask for much more. I’m not looking
to be a GM, I like the restaurants too much.” He sat back, obviously
proud of his professional achievements, still being well under 30 years of
age.
But as mentioned at the beginning, there is more to
this passionate Italian than passing pasta. He plays guitar, and was even
in a band as a youngster. He sketches, mainly portraits, and loves hopping
on enduro motorcycles a blasting off into the countryside.
He is still unmarried, saying that the hours and lifestyle means that
you cannot have a wife and children as well. Or perhaps the right woman
hasn’t pressed her pesto sauce yet?
