A day in an Italian pasticceria
by Joanne Lane 4am Certaldo, Tuscany.
Today Vincenzo Garacchi turned 42 but otherwise it is no different to any other. He woke up at 4am and was at work by 4.30am, driving through the Tuscan cold and gloom to Certaldo, a small town near Florence, to open the pasticceria (pastry shop) where he has worked for almost 30 years. 5am
When I arrive the shop lights are spilling into the dark empty autumn street. I am late and Vincenzo has already turned on the ovens to prepare the pastries for the day ahead. He is whistling and singing to himself. The ovens create welcome warmth from the street, but are sweltering in summer. He is alone, apart from the token girly posters on the walls and a few hundred varieties of Italian dolce (sweets). He is pleased to see me but busy with benches full of every kind of warm, brown, dusted and oiled sweet imaginable. It is almost ready for delivery and he can`t afford to stop for too many pleasantries. For an Italian though, even the shortest greeting at least involves kisses, a "Buongiorno, come stai?" (Good morning, how are you?) and Vincenzo`s usual "Tu hai mangiato?" (have you eaten?) Whatever I answer the response is always the same. An order is given, "Mangia" (eat) and something is produced. This time he cuts up a cheese and prosciutto (ham) pizza, nods when my mouth is bulging and turns his blue eyes back to work. I watch his hands, deft with experience, as he makes piles of the cakes and pastries - the orders and numbers in his head alone so I can`t help. 5.30am
In between conversation, "Jo, chiesta me tutto" (Jo, ask me everything) pizzas, cakes, croissants with cream, plain croissants, things with glazed tops, dusted tops, heart shapes, round shapes, odd shapes, donuts and panninis (sandwiches) are put into trays to be loaded in the car. Usually his partner Gianpiero does the deliveries but this is his day off. Gianpiero is a tall man who usually speaks a confusing mixture of French, Italian and English to me. He loves dancing and he and his wife Lorenza (who also works with him) go out every Friday night. If he were here we would probably be drinking an early morning beer by now. Another day I visited the shop he worked for half an hour with his motorbike helmet on before he realised. 5.40am
Our first delivery is to Marco in Bar Europa next door. Marco is cutting up prosciutto behind the bar. He gives us Italian coffee, a small cup with an equally small amount of the strongest, black liquid you can swallow. We chat about Vincenzo`s birthday and the party he will have tonight. Most of the conversation revolves around the food, after all this is Italy. 5.45am
We load the car with pastries and proceed on a tour of the town as the first light seeps in. There are a few people going to work, old grouchy types that can`t sleep, and slow cars on the road we overtake - always something that amazes me in Italy as Italians are renowned for their fast driving. It is hunting season so there also hunters taking ritual morning coffees in the bars or on the roads with keen dogs snuffling at the back windows. It`s very cold and we have the heating on. Vincenzo laughs as I warm my hands over the heater. It will snow here in a month or two. He sings along to a "canzone di amore" (love song) on the radio and explains each bar we deliver to, the politics behind the trade and other work stories. One bar is for older people, another new and trendy, another a long drive out of town as a special favour to a friend. There are three pasticcerias in and around Certaldo and his ex wife works at one. She used to work with him when he first owned the shop before Gianpiero joined him. We visit Bar Rossi, Bar Italia, Bar Sport, Bar Polisportiva, Bar Baschet and Bar Andaco. There are Alessandro`s, Federico`s, Giovanni`s, Antonella`s, Paula`s, Renato`s, Andrea`s and Vania`s. All offer coffee, pose or hide from the camera and share a joke. Vincenzo started this work as a 14 year old after school and it led into a career. He bought the shop when he was 22 and has worked from 4.30am-1pm, and 4pm-8pm every day since apart from the two-week holiday he takes every year. He has two children, his family is originally from Sicily but he was born and bred in Certaldo. He is as local as there is. 7am
Back at the pasticceria Vincenzo starts preparing for the rest of the day. There are birthday cake orders, sandwiches to make and the serving cabinet in the shop front to fill. The first customers will arrive soon and he needs to be ready. In the afternoon he will prepare for tomorrows breakfast. But he`s more relaxed now the deliveries are done and laughs periodically at questions I fumble to him in Italian. When he laughs he throws his head back, kicks the floor and lets out loud hoots. It`s entertaining. Our first visitor, Vincenzo`s older brother Joseph arrives for breakfast and gives Vincenzo a present. Vincenzo does not even open it, saying he knows it is after-shave. He is right. 7.10am
Vincenzo`s girlfriend Miriam arrives to work in the bar next-door exclaiming "vecchio uomo" (old man) to him. She is late and Vincenzo tut tuts her, turning to tell me the importance of punctuality. She grimaces and disappears. I turn my hand to some pastry making but somehow something that Vincenzo rolls and twist into a perfect shape becomes grossly deformed and squashy under my hands. Vincenzo just laughs and produces something else for me to eat. I`ve already had a pizza, croissant, almond cake and five cups of coffee by now. Signs of work are everywhere. Patches of flour and sugar, open packets of icing sugar, used trays, broken pastries. While I am observing the scene I notice a sign saying it is prohibited to enter the work area. This is for legal requirements but Vincenzo says he always lets in his friends. I`ve seen policemen, local hoods, kids, grandmas and half the town in the back of his shop. Local chefs come in to get him to taste a new pizza, birthdays are celebrated with champagne and problems are discussed or more often exclaimed over as they are in Italy. 7.20am
The first customer arrives and Vincenzo goes out the front to serve. Natural light finally fills the street but it is still cold. There are street sweepers and emergency people around. By the time church bells sound to signal the start of day, Vincenzo has been working over three hours, is preparing to sell up to 800 pastries a day and is making his way through the 600 eggs, 150 litres of milk, 50 kilos of flour, 30 litres of oil, 100 kilos of sugar and endless amounts of butter and margarine per week. No wonder Italians love their sweets and their stomach lines show this by middle age. With all the coffee, dolce (sweets) and this conversational approach to life it`s got to be hazardous. The effects have taken their toll on Vincenzo and are visible every time he smiles as his capped and filled teeth show - which is often. But it`s also what brings in the custom every day of the year. A personal approach and beam to business. 9am
I leave the pasticceria, stomach bulging from a 4-hour breakfast and a sack full of pastries "per dopo" (for later). Certaldo has come to life with kids going to school, police dolling out parking tickets, women walking dogs and of course ... the customers coming for their morning pastries. ABOUT CERTALDO AND TUSCANY
The address of Vincenzo`s shop is Pasticceria Artigiana, Via IV Novembre, Certaldo. It is just around the corner from the post office. Certaldo is a little known town in the heart of the Tuscan countryside complete with a medieval castle brick hilltop town with quiet streets, archways, and plenty of festivals and events in summer, notably Mercantia in July. Vineyards and olive groves start immediately from outside the town, with other famous towns like Siena, Florence, San Gimignano and Pisa all close by and accessible on day trips. GETTING THERE AND AWAY
Pisa airport is the closest arrival point to the Certaldo and Tuscan region. From here trains service major places in Tuscany. Certaldo is on the train line between Siena and Florence. WHERE TO STAY
In Certaldo itself is Fattoria Bassetto, a former Benedictine monastery and then working farm that was converted into a lodge for independent travelers with dorm and private rooms. Fattoria Bassetto has a website, www.bassettobackpack.com and email info@backpackglobe.com
Bookings are advised. They provide a pickup service from the train station. BOOK HERE |
