Zeffirino’s glorious history starts in 1939, when Zeffirino Belloni first opened his family restaurant in Genova, the capital city of the Italian Riviera. Nine years later, his ten-year-old son stepped into the kitchen of this family restaurant and found the he, like his father, had also been blessed with the God-given gift of creating culinary ecstasy. The Zeffirino family’s epicurean talent has
remained constant for four generations and five decades, and today, Zeffirino’s son Gian Paolo along with extended family continue the delectable family tradition of mesmerizing diners with their special cuisine in Italy, Spain, China and the USA. Maestro di Cucina Cavaliere, Gian Paolo’s culinary awards are endless and include an Escoffier Award considered the highest international gastronomic award and the European Golden Medal. His food has dazzled international celebrities who can eat anywhere they choose and choose to eat at Zeffirino. Amongst them are famous tenor Luciano Pavarotti who sang for Gian Paolo’s pesto, boxing greats Muhammad Ali, Italian actress, Sophia Loren, a sophisticated fan and fancier of Genovese foods, The Chairman of the Board, Frank Sinatra, whose mother came from Genova and cooked similar Pesto in her Hoboken home, and the late, great Pope John Paul II, who declared Gian Paolo “The Pope’s Pesto Maker.”
