One of my favourite restaurants is La Cucina della Marianna in Griante at Lake Como (Italy). The kitchen is run by ‘Ty’. Ty runs a ‘non-democratic kitchen’. This means customers cannot choose a menu, they need to eat whatever Ty has decided to prepare. My wife and I even took his concept one step further by the way: we now also let Ty decide on the wine.

When I asked if I could take his picture, Ty advised me to use a wide-angle lens to ensure the camera could deal with his proportions. I had to make do with my brand new Olympus Zuiko 25 mm 1.8 though.

What is interesting to know is that Ty feels as much at home behind, as in front of the camera. Besides being a great cook, he is also a serious photographer and has a some impressive analogue (Rollei 6×6 and Nikon F gear). You can admire his pictures on the walls of his restaurant and he also published a book with them.

---

Panasonic Lumix G81M |Olympus Zuiko 25 mm 1.8