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ARMANDO PERCUOCO - 1999
Armando Percuoco was born in Naples into a family of restaurateurs and educated at Alessandro Volta High School. From the age of 14 after school and during holidays, Armando learned the restaurant trade with his father Mario at Le Arcate, one of the top three restaurants in Naples. During this time Armando worked both the kitchen and the dining room until starting his apprenticeship at Le Arcade. He then worked at La Canzone del Mare on the Isle of Capri.
From 1965-1968 he was 2nd Chef at Don Quixote in Naples. 1968-1969 at Transatlantico Seafood Restaurant at St. Lucia. From 1970-1072 he returned to the kitchen at Le
Arcate.
Armando arrived in Australia in 1972 and joined his father at Arriverderci Restaurant, East Sydney. From 1975-1979 Armando worked as head waiter and day manager at Chianti, Sydney’s oldest Italian restaurant.
In 1979 Mario and Armando Percuoco opened Pulcinella Restaurant in Kings Cross aiming to introduce Australians to adventurous regional cooking they had never experienced. Pulcinella was rated as Sydney’s top southern Italian restaurant particularly because of its ‘chariot’ of antipasto dishes. In 1986 Armando published his first cookbook “The Secrets of Pulcinella”, which was then republished in 1992 as “Modern Italian Cooking in Australia.
In 1987 Armando opened Buon Ricordo in Paddington, providing more sophisticated food than Pulcinella. By the 1990’s Armando and Buon Ricordo had established a reputation for food and service that has continued with a full house every night.
1990’s saw Buon Ricordo named one of Australia’s “Top Fifty Restaurants” (Stephen Downes) and received “Two Hats” in The Sydney Morning Herald Good Food Guide.
In 1992 Armando re-opened the old Chianti Restaurant as a Milan style tavola calda called Gastronomia Chianti with Doreen Orsatti. He also established La Tavola Art Prize for young artists in conjunction with Dr Gene Sherman of Sherman Galleries.
Armando held the first chefs fund-raising dinner for the Starlight Foundation at Buon Ricordo which is now an annual national event involving the best of Australia’s chefs and raising hundreds of thousands of dollars.
In 1994 he published his second book “La Cucina Italiana, the Four Seasons of Italian Cooking”.
1996, 1997, 1998 and 1999 he was awarded SMH Good Food Guide “Best Italian Restaurant” and is always very highly recommended in the Tucker Seabrook Australian Wine List of the Year.
In 1997 Armando was awarded the Insegna di Ristorante Italiano by the President of Italy for his contribution to Italian cuisine outside Italy.
Armando Percuoco as well as being a regular guest on radio and TV food programs, continues to do what he does best – providing the best of Italian food and hospitality to his customers.
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