Despite his profound success, Angelè retains the humble, gentle and dreamy spirit of the child who would spend hours behind the counter of his uncle’s cafe, Santa Chiara.
At Santa Chiara Angelè would serve coffee to customers. During breaks he watched and learned from his cousin who made cakes, pastries and biscuits.
Born in Matino, in the province of Lecce, but raised in Rome, Angelè is today one of Australia’s most important and renowned pastry chefs. He and a few others are credited for introducing and popularising Italian pastries Down Under.
His journey has always oscillated between the nostalgia which still deeply ties him to Rome and the promises of this new land he initially came to for an adventure, before it became his home.
Angelè’s treasure, pride and creation is Melbourne’s Brunetti - one of the iconic symbols of Italian excellence and the Italian diaspora.
“I entered the world of pastry when I was still a child,” said Angelè, speaking comfortably in a back room of Brunetti in Carlton, still wearing his uniform after kneading dough.
“At [my uncle’s] cafe, we had a workshop where we prepared everything that would be served for breakfast, both at our bar and at our two hotels. That’s how I fell in love with the world of pastry.”
His journey in Australia began in 1956 when Angelè, somewhat on a whim, decided to participate in a competition to serve the Italian team during the Melbourne Olympics.
Incredibly, he was selected to join the team of ten cooks and two pastry chefs who would cater to the Azzurri athletes.
“I obtained a two-year contract to stay in Australia. I could have left the country after the Olympics,” he explained.
He left Italy in October of that year and reached Australia’s shores aboard the Flaminia in November.
“I remember being particularly moved by the welcome we received here. They greeted us as heroes, which we certainly were not, but there was a lot of enthusiasm for our arrival in Melbourne.”
After the Olympics, Angelè originally planned to return to Italy, but a chance encounter in Sydney changed everything.
“We were dining at La Veneziana, then one of the trendiest Italian restaurants in Sydney,” he recalled.
“This woman approached me, informing me of someone who wanted to speak with me. It was a gentleman who had opened a pastry shop and was struggling to find a good pastry chef.
“He almost begged me to stay a bit longer, saying he needed me or he would have to close down.”
As a result of his kind and altruistic nature, Angelè decided to stay and help the man for a few months, until the shop owner could find a replacement.
“Three months turned into six, then nine. Time simply flew by, but eventually he found the pastry chef who would replace me.”
A year after his Sydney experience, Angelè returned to Melbourne. There, he was informed of an opportunity to purchase a pastry shop in Kew at a reasonable price.
“It was a small Australian pastry shop. It wasn’t my world, and back then there weren’t many Italians in Kew,” he said.
“But I was encouraged to do what I did best, Italian pastry, however selling those products was very difficult.”
Fortunately, support from Melbourne’s Italian community, especially during tough times, was enough for Angelè to get by.
“There were two Italian families that helped me, often buying my products, along with the then Consul General of Italy in Melbourne,” he revealed.
In the meantime, Angelè started focusing some of his attention towards Australian pastries to reach a broader clientele.
Word soon spread around the city, and his products began to be sought after by more Italians.
“There was a bus that arrived at Belford Road, full of Italians who came to me for coffee.
“I [also] filled boxes with maritozzi, bombes and croissants and went down to Johnston Street to supply all the Italian establishments in the area that wanted my products.
“So, slowly, I started to distribute my sweets and grow my business.”
Encouraged by his success, Angelè acquired another location in Richmond, a neighbourhood bustling with Italians at the time.
“From there, an incredible ascent began,” he said.
“As soon as it became known that an Italian pastry shop had opened in the neighbourhood, people were always there to order, even for occasions like communions, engagements and weddings.
“There were even catering services that requested my products.”
Despite the success and his life in Melbourne, Angelè never quite let go of the idea of returning to Rome.
The opportunity to go back arose in 1969 when his Richmond shop was seriously damaged by a fire.
“It was Easter time. Our shop was full of Easter eggs and surprises we had prepared to sell,” he recalled.
“We managed to rescue some of the surprises we had prepared, but the rest went up in flames.
“We decided to return to Rome. I still had a house in Largo Preneste, so we went there.
“My boys attended school there for two years. But then, we came back here.
“I met a dear friend who is no longer with us and who wanted to launch his panettone company in Australia. He convinced me,” Angelè continued.
“We returned and founded European Biscuits, but it didn’t go particularly well.
“We didn’t have the right ingredients for panettone, the flours, the different temperatures.
“In short, we did it for two years then closed for financial reasons.”
Angelè didn’t lose heart. In 1972, he tried again, launching Ital Biscuits, now the largest producer of Italian biscuits, panettones and pandolcis in Australia, currently managed by his son Robert.
“Ours is a large operation of high quality. We deal with seasonal products like Easter doves, Christmas panettone and biscuits for all occasions.
“We have an oven that produces seven hundred kilograms of biscuits per hour.”
The iconic Brunetti, as we know it today, was born in November 1991.
A friend of Angelè’s, Piero Brunetti, mentioned he was going back to Rome and offered Angelè the opportunity to buy his small pastry shop in Carlton.
Angelè immediately saw potential in the small shop and didn’t hesitate to seal the deal.
Today, Brunetti is a gem of the Italian community, one of the few treasures left in Carlton, the quintessential Italian district.
“My children helped me develop Brunetti and make it what it is today,” Angelè said.
“We have always offered our customers high-quality products, using raw materials imported directly from Italy.
“This is the philosophy we embraced from day one: products of the highest quality, good, genuine.
“[It’s] greatly appreciated by our customers, who here can find typical Italian ‘Sunday’ sweets.”
However, the story of Angelè and Brunetti would not have been possible without Gigliola, the woman of his life.
Gigliola has always supported Angelè in his choices and work and took care of the family while he was busy at work.
“Without her, nothing would have been possible,” he revealed.
She has always been there, and you can imagine how difficult it must have been for her with six boys at home.”
Angelè says he wouldn’t change anything about his life. He is grateful for everything that has happened.
But, when he talks about Rome, his eyes fill with tears as his voice swells with emotion.
In June, his journey was crowned with the Medal of the Order of Australia, for service to the restaurant and hospitality industry.
Today, at 91 years of age, Angelè continues to serve the Italian community and Victoria in the back of the iconic Carlton venue.
