+8 Starting From Scratch, Again
Starting From Scratch, Again
Starting From Scratch, Again
Starting From Scratch, Again
Starting From Scratch, Again
Starting From Scratch, Again
Starting From Scratch, Again
Starting From Scratch, Again
Starting From Scratch, Again
Starting From Scratch, Again
URBINO, Italy— The sun has barely begun to rise, and the streets of Urbino are still quiet. Giuseppe Romeo’s broad back is hunched over a cold metal table as his thick arms, both adorned with dark tattoos, are working fast. His forehead is lined with sweat, his face is laced with a small smile, and his hands and clothes are covered with stains of bright red.
Romeo dips his wooden spoon into a pot of tomato sauce and spreads it across a crisp crust. Then he embellishes the blank red canvas with white mozzarella cheese. After letting the mozzarella and tomato sauce blend together in the warmth of the oven, Romeo takes out his finished artwork and grunts in approval. His rough, calloused hands gently slice one of the last pizzas he will ever make in Urbino.
Romeo is the manager and pizza maker for Quadro pizza and is often praised for the quality of the products. He learned all there is to know about making pizza at San Patrignano, a drug rehabilitation facility in Rimini, just 30 kilometers north of Urbino.
San Patrignano helped Romeo recover from a 16-year addiction to drugs and gave him a second chance at life with the opportunity to manage Quadro Pizza. He had hoped his new life would continue in Urbino, but Quadro is closing its doors and relocating to nearby Montecchio at the end of the summer. The pizzeria is taking away not only its delicious products, but also Romeo. He says he has handled a major change in his life before.
“I started from scratch once and I’m not afraid to do it again,” Romeo says, laughing as he shows pictures of his younger self with shaggy black hair, pale skin, and a thick, silver septum ring—all of which contrasts with his now buzzed head, pink plump cheeks, and piercing-free nose. “Except this time, as a different person.”
The first big change in Romeo’s life was his family’s move from Naples when he was seven years old. After the death of his father, Romeo, his brother, and mother found it hard to get by in Naples. His mother worked several jobs to try and make ends meet, but that was not enough. Eventually, Romeo’s mother remarried, and their family moved to north Tuscany.
“I didn’t like rules and norms. I guess you could say I was a rebel.”
“People in the north tend to look down on those who come from the south because they believe they’re more educated and wealthier,” says Romeo. He remembers the neighbors turned backs and harsh whispers about his family. “I was discriminated against from the very beginning.”
Young Romeo was isolated and vulnerable. Even after years of trying, he found it hard to find someone close enough to call a “friend.” Feeling desperate and lonely, at the age of 13 Romeo began experimenting with drugs in hopes it would help him fit in. Soon enough, the mere experimentation became a dangerous addiction.
As time went on and people came and went, Romeo says, he found drugs to be the only stable way to satiate his hunger for love and security. His addiction became too much for the people around him, causing him to lose many relationships. His mother cut off contact with him when he was 19.
“I didn’t care, I didn’t like rules and norms. I just wanted to be free from everything,” Romeo says, laughing. “I guess you could say I was a rebel.”
Eventually, Romeo says, even he had enough. He was constantly losing sight of his future and was tired of bringing everyone around him pain. The heart-racing excitement he once felt from the drugs was now replaced with a dull, aching pain in his chest. He checked himself into San Patrignano when he was 29, where his next transition in life would begin.
San Patrignano is a drug rehabilitation facility that does more than just help with recovery. It also gives residents opportunities to learn various crafts and skills—such as wine-making, agriculture, and cheese-making—in hopes of helping them pursue future careers. The program also aids residents in their communication skills, so they can find a way to rejoin the society that once discriminated against them. The facility is where Romeo learned to change his negative mindset for the better.
“San Patrignano made me an entirely different person,” Romeo says. “It was a turning point in my life. It’s where I learned that self-esteem is key to success and confidence in everything that a person does.”
Romeo spent a total of five years at San Patrignano, most of them learning about dairy, then spent the rest of his time working at Spaccio, one of the two on-site restaurants. There he learned several baking techniques that he still uses to this day. Working at Spaccio was unpaid and included long work hours. Romeo says many of the employees made it a point to complain. He, on the other hand, enjoyed everything he did. “Learning to make pizza was something that came easy to me because it came from the heart. I wanted to know how to do everything properly” he says.
San Patrignano is also how Romeo came in contact with Paola Uguccioni, the owner of Quadro pizza.
“He always got his work done. He got even more mature when he got himself a girlfriend.”
“Ever since the first time I met him, he was responsible,” says Uguccioni, with a wide smile on her face. She is dressed in a bright neon floral shirt and sits at her desk surrounded by pictures of her family and thank-you notes from San Patrignano residents she has helped. She is a volunteer for the nonprofit organization Associazione Volontariato Antidroga Pesaro (Anti-drug Volunteer Association Pesaro). The organization works with San Patrignano to help residents find jobs after they leave. When she met Romeo, she had already invested in Quadro pizza and needed a responsible figure to manage the store. After watching him work at Spaccio and witnessing his skills grow before her eyes, she decided he was the perfect fit.
“He always got his work done. He got even more mature when he got himself a girlfriend,” she says, laughing.
Although Romeo was a completely different person, he knew he still had a reputation in Tuscany that would be hard to change. “Once people label you, they will always stigmatize you, no matter how hard you try” he says. So when given the opportunity to work in the quaint city of Urbino doing what he loved, he jumped on the chance. Uguccioni was essentially the key that opened the door to Romeo’s future, and to this day they still remain in constant contact.
Quadro Pizza opened in Urbino in August, 2017. Romeo, who has been working there since day one, sees the restaurant as his personal escape from the outside world. He can do everything he wishes to do while on the job, and genuinely loves what he does. He is greeted by the same familiar faces and has established a sense of security within the environment. Day by day, he grows stronger and more confident in his skills.
“No one has ever complained about the way I make pizza. People have complained about the prices and other external factors, but nobody has ever said anything about the quality of the pizza” Romeo says with a puffed chest and proud smile.
Romeo says Urbino gave him the chance to become “fully human” again. He even has a girlfriend and two month old daughter in the city, making it truly a place he can call home. Since the initial move from San Patrignano to Urbino, Romeo says has adopted a positive mentality in life and chooses to display it as much as he can. That is why he is choosing to think positively about his next change in life, when Quadro closes its doors in Urbino and makes the move to Montecchio.
During Quadro’s first year, people were frequently coming to enjoy the new flavors and textures the pizza introduced to them, according to Uguccioni. However, as the restaurant entered its second year, profits began to slow.
“I like Urbino, I really do,” says Uguccioni,“but it’s not open to new things, and Quadro is new pizza.” She sighs. “Urbino is beautiful and has a great history. But it’s not good for owning a business. I couldn’t even decorate the store in any way because of the rules of the city. They were afraid it would hurt the history.”
In Montecchio, Quadro Pizza will have more room and will sell products other than pizza, such as french fries and sandwiches
Uguccioni is not the only business owner who feels this way. Sonia Rizzoli, who owns Nuova Tandem, a small fabric and lingerie store on the same street as Quadro, agrees with her. “Urbino is a beautiful small city,” says Rizzoli, who opened her store 12 years ago. “But lately, less tourists are coming which can slow down the sales. It’s hard to maintain a business with people constantly coming and going.”
“If I could change anything,” Rizzoli adds, “it would be an improvement in tourism because that’s where a majority of profits come from. But that’s something the government should change, not me.”
After two years, Uguccioni says she has decided that moving Quadro is the best option for the business. Montecchio, 23 kilomters from Urbino, is also a small town, buit she says it has more stores and opportunities to gain profit, and offers more possibilities. There Quadro Pizza will have more room and will sell products other than just pizza, such as french fries and sandwiches. And the one making and selling these products will be none other than Giuseppe Romeo, who will also move to a new apartment in Montecchio.
One morning only several weeks before Quadro’s closing in Urbino, Romeo opens the door to the shop, and lets the beaming sun and slight breeze fill the small space. The faint wind softly lets the scent of tomatoes, basil, and freshly baked bread escape the room.
On his right arm is a realistic tattoo of an owl. The eyes of the figure are bright enough to contrast against the dark, black feathers that frame its body.
“Many people see owls as a sign of bad luck, but not me,” says Romeo. His left hand brushes over the tattoo on his right arm and pauses. “You know, owls are the only animals that can turn their heads completely backwards and then forward again.”
Some may view Urbino’s Quadro as a failure. But Romeo says he sees it as a new beginning, and new beginnings bring new possibilities. The optimistic perception of life he built at San Patrignano will now guide him through his next transition at Montecchio.
“I won’t say I’m happy about the move,” Romeo says. “I’m motivated.”
Translation of interviews and other language assistance by University of Urbino students Francesca Massari, Luca Cocozza, Lisa Olivia, and Roberto Giambona.
Video by Ester Jon
Urbino, Italy is a quiet city that holds significant history. It is also a city, like anywhere else in Italy, that has multiple pizza shops. Ester Jon takes us on her personal journey to nearly every pizza shop in Urbino in search of the perfect slice.
