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About Aldo Zilli

Aldo Zilli is the charismatic owner and chef of his acclaimed Zilli restaurants in Soho. He has also forged an extremely successful career in television, radio and print.

After catering college in Italy Aldo came to England and at the age of 19 decided to concentrate on his passion for Italian food. He started working in Italian restaurants introducing new cooking methods and eclectic menus, transforming them from little-known venues to celebrity haunts. However he soon outgrew the kitchen, becoming executive manager and training other chefs in his own inimitable style.

Eventually Aldo decided to go it alone and acquired his first restaurant, IL Siciliano, in Dean Street. Word quickly spread about the authentic Italian cuisine and convivial atmosphere created by Aldo and soon the restaurant had become Soho's most popular hotspot.

In 1988 he bought the premises at 41 Dean Street and opened Signor Zilli, following this in 1993 next with London's first authentic Italian bar, Signor Zilli Bar, located next door. Aldo opened Zilli Fish in Brewer Street in June 1997 and it has become an institution since its opening, now complemented by an Italian cafe next door, Zilli Cafe. Great Italian food and Aldo's legendary sense of humour make these establishments a magnet for people from the media and entertainment world. In 1996 he was awarded Best Italian Restaurant Award in the London Restaurant Awards, and in 1998 he collected the award for Best Media Restaurant for Zilli Fish. He has also been awarded Best Cafe in the Theme Awards, and Favourite Showbiz Restaurant for Signor Zilli in the Capital Radio Awards .

Aldo has rapidly become a celebrity television chef, as the presenter for Dinner Dates for LWT in 2003 and recent guest appearances have been on The Morning Show (BBC), Rise TV (Channel 4), GMTV when he went to Italy and recorded The Summer Chef (ITV1), and This Morning (ITV). He recorded several series for Carlton Food including One Man and his Hob in 2001 as well as Perfect Pasta with Aldo Zilli, Aldo's Italian Job and Aldo and Friends, which featured celebrity guests. In 2000 he co-presented the CFN series Two Chefs in The Cape with Brian Turner and he has guested on a number of programmes including The Weakest Link, Channel 4's Light Lunch, Saturday Kitchen, The London Programme and The Food Factory. He has featured in TV commercials for First Direct Bank and Orbit Sugar Free Gum and most recently is the face of Kellogs Optivia.

Aldo made his acting debut on an episode of London Bridge in October 1998 and has subsequently starred in Emmerdale and the independent film, 'Are you Ready for Love'. He also joined Henry Kelly on Classic FM to create A Taste of Italy, which was broadcast every weekday morning and he also appeared on Virgin Radios Friday morning breakfast show with Chris Evans. Aldo was one of the highly popular singing chefs in the recent series of Celebrity X Factor in which they raised over £23,000 for Action Against Hunger. He also led the successful team to victory on Celebrity Fit Club on ITV1, gaining a new slender figure in the process. His success he partly attributes to the healthy eating plan he devised for himself, a diet specifically designed for men.

Aldo has been resident chef for The Sun newspaper and has written four books: Aldo's Italian Food for Friends (1998), Zilli Fish (1999), Foolproof Italian (2001), The Zilli Cookbook (2003) and Fish Cook (2006).

The Zilli Cookery School in his home town, Pescara, offers the chance to enjoy a unique cookery school and activity programme in the beautiful surroundings of Abruzzo in Italy.

He is the face of Thomson Fly Airlines where he has completely revamped the food on board and has recently opened a Zilli restaurant on The Thomson Celebration Cruise Ship with the intent to open on many more of the Thomson Cruise Ships.

Along with everything else Aldo is the Alfa Romeo chef and travels around the country in style, frequently appearing at exhibitions on their behalf.

In February this year, Aldo's autobiography, Being Zilli, is published. In July he opened Zilli Brasserie and Zilli cafe in myhotel Brighton, his first project outside of London.

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About Aldo Zilli