A conversation with Attilio Labozetta – Gigino
Tucked away on the corner of a small street and the main road in Fairfield is a well-known Italian diner that is much-loved by the local community. The Fairfield area has its riches in many cultural cuisines from middle-eastern in the heart of Fairfield city to the Vietnamese and Chinese cuisine in the neighbouring suburb of Cabramatta. Gigino steps up to provide the Italian entry to our spoiled suburb offering brilliant pasta, delicious wood-fired pizza and cocktails. An absolute local favourite of mine, I knew I had to catch up with Attilio and share his story about his restaurant and see how they went as a team in a year riddled with uncertainty.
D: “How did you start Gigino?”
Attilio: “So it’s almost been 9 years now. It just started with a name from a movie that I saw. There was a place called Gigino and that means ‘little Luigi’ and I thought that was a cool name for a restaurant. I always wanted to do something authentic and share the meals that I grew up with my mum and my grandmother. I added that to the restaurant and added in pizzas as well.”
D: “What were you doing before Gigino?”
Attilio: “I was in hospitality and I travelled for 4 years – went to Europe and North America. Got a wealth of experience in the industry and I had the opportunity to travel and work abroad. This would be my 21st year in the industry. I had my own restaurant in Darling Harbour from ’99 to ’07. After I sold it I went on my little travelling bubble so it’s been quite the adventure. Quite the tiring adventure but a very educational one to say the least.”
D: “What made you want to open a new restaurant out west in the Fairfield area? Are you from here?”
Attilio: “Yeah so Mum and Dad own the property and have lived here for 50 years now. If we go back 9 years ago there were a few places around that did traditional meals, nothing too unique. If I wanted to do something I had to do something unique. So I think that’s why we’ve been around here for 9 years. If you want to have longevity in any business, you have to have the consistency. If you come here you definitely know what you’re going to get.”
D: “What makes Gigino unique?”
Attilio: “Um, I think good, honest and wholesome food that has an unpretentious feel to it. I come into work in a shirt, shorts and trainers – it’s all about being comfortable. When people come in and see you’re dressed the way you are it feels like you’re coming into my home.”
D: “What’s your favourite thing on the menu?”
Attilio: “I think it’s hard to go past the arancini balls and the truffle cream gnocchi. I tried to take it off the menu for summertime but people kept coming in and asking for it. So yeah I think those two dishes as well as the Luigi pizza (Prosciutto, mushrooms, mozzarella, parmigiano & truffle oil pizza). Personally, I really love the eggplant parmigiana and my go-to pizza would be the maccelaio (mozzarella, pomodoro, nduja, salami, ham & pork sausages).”
Attilio and I spend a few moments going through some of the specials on the menu he’s had in the past. One of the most awesome specials I’ve had here was a crab ravioli in scampi sauce. Attilio if you’re reading this… BRING IT BACK!
D: “When you first heard about COVID-19, what were your first thoughts during that time?”
Attilio: “Yeah there was definitely a concern about whether hospitality would remain open during that time. We were wondering what we could do whether it was just takeaway and delivery. For us, I think the transition was easy because we were already doing takeaway and delivery. For some others, I think they struggled because they weren’t doing that before. We had a smooth transition, we were still busy and you know people still needed to eat. I think once people got used to the idea that we had to live with it I think things were always going to get better. What the premier has been doing and how our state has managed to keep going despite everything I think has been really good. It is what it is, you just have to live with it and deal with it. My saying is ‘it’s always easy to make money in good times but if you can make money and survive during challenging times then you’ve got a good little business’. The fact that staff still had work and we haven’t really stopped, we’re grateful for the local community in supporting us and without them, we wouldn’t have a business.”
D: “Were you getting a lot of orders from your regulars?”
Attilio: “Umm, no not really we had a good mix. I changed the menu a little and didn’t have as many options. Whatever we had we wanted to do it quickly so we were able to serve a lot of customers that way. In all honesty, I can’t really say anything too negative about the whole experience. It was challenging but it wasn’t as bad as some others had faced. I think both our Prime Minister and Premier did a very good job. It’s easy to make rash decisions when there’s a crisis but they’ve done well. In the last 8 months, I think the business has been a great position. It was challenging but it gave us the time to think about the way we run the business in terms of floor staff and kitchen staff. Even when re-opening, we introduced new time settings and now we’re able to give more opportunities to come in and eat. It’s been good for us.”
D: “Did you do anything else different to get through that period?”
Attilio: “Yeah there were two weeks at the beginning where we didn’t know whether we were going to make enough to survive. I also started selling groceries in the shop. You know there was a stupid time when people were going crazy at the shops so I wanted to help. I even ended up selling toilet paper here for people. It was just very surprising to see how people reacted. I feel for the people who are involved in venues and entertainment. They’ve probably had a lot of loss so I feel for them. My cousins own a fireworks business and they’ve suffered a lot because events haven’t been happening. It’s tough but what do you do, you just have to keep going until you turn a corner back into some sort of normality.”
D: “Yeah it’s been a such a crazy time for everyone.”
Attilio: “Yeah exactly. I don’t think anyone expected to see something like this in their lifetime. We’ll probably look back at it one day and be amazed on a different level. But I’m happy at the moment. I’m quite laid back with my mentality so I’ve never let anything that’s happening in the world affect that mindset. Always prepare for the worst and anything less, you’ll be okay.”
D: “How much does the community mean to you?”
Attilio: “A lot. I gave back a lot during the pandemic. There were some nights where I donated a lot of pizzas and gave it to the people at Liverpool hospital. I also did a full weekend where I offered any healthcare workers a free Margherita pizza to give back to the community. Some people took advantage of it but you know what can you do. I’m super grateful any time someone walks into my restaurant. That’s how it always should be because they’re the ones who are supporting you.”
D: “What are favourite places to eat in Sydney?”
Attilio: “I love so many restaurants. I love Alberto’s Lounge, Ragazzi and Felix which I think is an amazing restaurant. I love Asian food and Japanese food. Fat Panda, I love going there and supporting another local there in Jenny and Viet (Jenny and Viet Dinh from Fat Panda). I love them both, they helped me out so much when I first started out by telling all their friends about my restaurant. There’s a massive Vietnamese demographic near here so I love visiting all those Vietnamese restaurants in Canley Heights – I love the Pho and the Bun Dac Biet. Did I make sense?”
Attilio has a laugh wondering if he’s butchered the pronunciation but he’s got it pretty spot on!
“In the city, I love going to Lotus in Barangaroo – they never disappoint, and I love the XO noodles there it’s one of my favourite dishes. We’re very spoilt here in our area. If you go to places like Cabramatta, you’ll get an entire cultural experience.”
The interview ends there as dinner service starts to ramp up with numerous people entering the door for their bookings. Gigino is one of the tastiest Italian restaurants around the South-West that prides itself on tradition but with a few twists here and there. Make sure to give them a visit and snap up some of their Italian classics.
