Roberto Bellissimo, owner of recently-opened Centrale Italian Kitchen and Bar, said he's been a sous chef at New York City’s famed Le Cirque and worked for a group of restaurants with locations at 9th Avenue's Chelsea Market and in Europe, among other things. But, in talking about Centrale's hospitality, he draws on memories of his grandfather delivering bread.
Bellissimo was growing up in Toronto when his grandfather Vito, who emigrated there in 1952, would deliver an assortment of fresh breads including ciabatta and Portuguese rolls. On Saturdays, he went with his grandfather, who would go to the doors of customers and sometimes have a cup of coffee with them. And, at lunchtime, people could pick their bread from the back of the truck.
