Like so many Australians, we are the offspring of immigrant genitori (parents) & nonni (grandparents) who made sacrifices to move to the other side of the world (piu lontana!) in search of a better life. We are husband and wife – Ben and Michaela – and best friend – Daniel – and we are all fiercely proud of our Italian heritage, which covers top to bottom: Veneto, Lazio, Abruzzo and Sicilia. The idea of “Zecca Handmade Italian” was conceived after returning from an extensive food holiday to the motherland, and the dream of opening an Italian eatery focused on the true regional food of Italy which is so unfamiliar here in our hometown of Griffith was born (no tourist Italian fare here at Zecca Handmade Italian). The thought of not sharing this genuine gastronomy and culture seemed to be an opportunity lost if we didn’t do this, and what would be more fun than divulging our very own family traditions (annual salami and sauce day, seasonal preserving, card nights to name but a few) with a mutual love of food, coffee, culture and lingo! The opportunity to move back home to Griffith after living in the big smoke and foodie capital of Australia, Melbourne, for 10 years, to launch Zecca Handmade Italian seemed like fate!