OUR HISTORY
As a young lad, Alfredo Di Lelio had a great desire to work and a strong passion for the culinary arts, which led him to achieve worldwide success and fame, starting with a small family-run restaurant in Piazza Rosa, adjacent to the current Galleria Colonna.
OUR HISTORY
As a young lad, Alfredo Di Lelio had a great desire to work and a strong passion for the culinary arts, which led him to achieve worldwide success and fame, starting with a small family-run restaurant in Piazza Rosa, adjacent to the current Galleria Colonna.
Alfredo I
It all began when his wife Ines gave birth to their first child.
The woman was very weak after giving birth to little Alfredo II, and her husband, concerned for her health, did everything he could to help her regain her strength with healthy, nutritious food.
It was here that the idea for the dish that would later become famous throughout the world was born. With his own hands, he prepared fettuccine pasta mixed with semolina and seasoned with fresh butter and Parmesan cheese. He then said a prayer to St. Anne (patron saint of women in labour) and served this dish to Ines, saying, ‘If you don’t like it, I’ll eat it myself!’.
Not only did she enjoy eating them, but she even suggested adding them to the menu of their small restaurant.
In Alfredo’s destiny, these two ‘contemporary births’, his son and the ‘blondes’, as he affectionately called his fettuccine, have since been the driving force behind his worldwide fame.
His tireless work, combined with great enthusiasm, attracted customers from all over the world.
IN 1908
FETTUCCINE IS BORN
In Piazza Rosa (now Galleria Colonna)
IN 1908
FETTUCCINE IS BORN
In Piazza Rosa (now Galleria Colonna)
The Golden Cutlery
Presented to Alfredo Di Lelio by Douglas Fairbanks and Mary Pickford
Another decisive step in his path to success and satisfaction was his meeting with Douglas Fairbanks and Mary Pickford, the two famous American silent film actors, who, after tasting his succulent and original dishes during their honeymoon in Rome, at his restaurant in Via della Scrofa, which he opened in 1914, gave him two gold cutlery sets as a tribute to his warm and friendly welcome.
The gift consisted of a solid gold fork and spoon engraved with the dedication: ‘To Alfredo, the King of Noodles’, read by every illustrious person who had the honour of tasting the Majestic Fettuccine with this ‘king of taste at the table’ cutlery.
The Golden Cutlery
Presented to Alfredo Di Lelio by Douglas Fairbanks and Mary Pickford
Another decisive step in his path to success and satisfaction was his meeting with Douglas Fairbanks and Mary Pickford, the two famous American silent film actors, who, after tasting his succulent and original dishes during their honeymoon in Rome, at his restaurant in Via della Scrofa, which he opened in 1914, gave him two gold cutlery sets as a tribute to his warm and friendly welcome.
The gift consisted of a solid gold fork and spoon engraved with the dedication: ‘To Alfredo, the King of Noodles’, read by every illustrious person who had the honour of tasting the Majestic Fettuccine with this ‘king of taste at the table’ cutlery.
Alfredo II
cThe years passed, and then the war came, bringing a turning point in Alfredo’s life.
Alfredo I decided to retire from the scene, leaving his place to his worthy heir, Armando, as Alfredo II, in the restaurant on Via della Scrofa. Thanks to the experience he had gained over time working alongside his father and his undeniably charismatic personality, he always welcomed his customers with a splendid smile that spread beneath his ‘Umberto-style’ moustache, which would later become the symbol of ‘Alfredo’.
Alfredo III
cThe Restaurant in Piazza Augusto Imperatore, 30
In 1950, Alfredo I decided to take back the reins by opening a new restaurant in Piazza Augusto Imperatore, 30, where the family tradition continues today, first carried on by his son Armando, who left the restaurant in Via della Scrofa, and later by his son Alfredo III together with his sister Ines Di Lelio.
From father to son, from son to grandson, the Alfredo family became a veritable dynasty.
Alfredo III, inheriting the creativity of his grandfather and father, deserves credit for having worthily continued the path traced by his predecessors, bringing the name of this historic restaurant to the world.
Ines Di Lelio &
Chiara Cuomo
