Cory Culmer: What town in Italy did you grow up in?
Alfonso Curti: The small town of Calabria, Italy.

Cory Culmer: Are there different styles of food in Italy?
Alfonso Curti: Yes, there are Northern and Southern styles. Northern style focuses on white sauce and slow cooked foods. Southern style focuses on red sauces and fish.

Cory Culmer: How old were you when you first started cooking?
Alfonso Curti: I was 13 years old when I first started cooking.

Cory Culmer: How did you learn to cook? Did you learn from your family or did you go to school?
Alfonso Curti: I learned how to cook from my family. I spent time in the kitchen with my grandparents and worked in the family bakery. I first moved to Solvang from Italy over ten years ago to work at my family’s restaurant in Santa Ynez. I moved to Santa Maria seven years ago and opened my restaurant.

Cory Culmer: Do you have a favorite food?
Alfonso Curti: I, of course, love Italian food! I also enjoy Thai food, French food and especially, Mexican food.

Cory Culmer: What does the name of your restaurant mean?
Alfonso Curti: My restaurant is surrounded by olive trees that are native to the Santa Maria Valley. I wanted to incorporate that natural growth into our name. Trattoria means Italian “restaurant” and Uliveto means “olive grove”.

Cory Culmer: What makes Trattoria Uliveto special?
Alfonso Curti: You never know what is going to happen, it is always a surprise!” There is always something new and exciting. We are a family owned restaurant that focuses on quality Italian food. We are also the only traditional Italian restaurant in Santa Maria.

Cory Culmer: How many noodles does it take to make a plate of spaghetti?
Alfonso Curti: Hmmm….Let me see…I’ll say it takes 15 spaghetti noodles to make 6 oz. of spaghetti

Cory Culmer: What was your first priority when you started your own restaurant?
Alfonso Curti: It was important to me to make sure that we were serving a great product and quality food. It was also very important to train our staff properly.

Cory Culmer: Do you know any other famous chefs besides yourself?
Alfonso Curti: Yes, I know celebrity Chef Bradley Ogden.

Cory Culmer: What types of tools do you use most in the kitchen?
Alfonso Curti: I use a large pot for boiling pasta and a sauce pan for making sauces.

Cory Culmer: How much spaghetti sauce do you make in a day?
Alfonso Curti: We make 5 gallons of homemade fresh spaghetti sauce every day!