Guido was born in a village of around 200 people on the shore of Lake Como in the northern Italian region of Lombardy.  As an ambitious young man believing anything and everything is achievable, he spent his summer holidays working in the hospitality industry, and it didn’t take long for him to realise it would be the focus of an extensive career.  Soon after leaving school, Guido left regional Italy for the bright lights of London, to forge his career. He now describes himself as a Londoner from Italy.

Arriving in London one day, he started work in a restaurant, waiting tables, the very next day, with no opportunity to acclimatise or do any sightseeing.  Just 2 years later he was managing the very same restaurant and 4 years later he established the first of his own London restaurants, in partnership with his former boss.  In total, Guido ran 7 different dining establishments in London, at one point 3 of them at the same time.  Nearest to his heart, it seems, was that first one, Como Lario, opened in 1993.

A meeting way back in 1995 was pivotal to his current life.  This is when he first met the owner of Siam Winery, who owns both Monsoon Valley and Red Bull, including Red Bull Racing. Many interconnecting life threads have led to Guido currently living and working in Hua Hin as the General Manager of Monsoon Valley Winery. He was indeed lucky to take up a position with Siam Winery and his deeply respected friend in September 2019, since it allowed him to ride out the storm of Covid with minimal damage.  Guido speaks with much pride of the fact that each and every employee of Monsoon Valley Winery had stable employment and income throughout the pandemic.

The Formula 1 racing scene has been part of Guido’s career path, as well as being a passion.  One of his London restaurants became the unofficial kitchen of the Formula 1 in London, under the auspices of its then Chief Executive Bernie Ecclestone. It is no exaggeration to say that Guido’s restaurants have hosted music legends, royalty from many nations, film stars, major league soccer champions and high-profile individuals from around the world. I won’t embarrass Guido by mentioning names here, but the list did make my eyes bulge. And as well as working with the Red Bull team in Formula 1 racing, Guido has also worked alongside Benetton, Ferrari and Lotus, indeed bringing hot cuisine into the F1 arena with Lotus for the first time back in 1993.

Although Guido had a long, and indeed stellar, career in the hospitality industry in London, and it gave him money, acclaim and prestige, it wasn’t able to provide him all the things he now values so much about his life in Hua Hin.  Guido has three sons he clearly loves deeply, and of whom he is very proud.  He speaks with regret about missing so much of the childhood of his two elder sons, now adults and living in London, while he put what he now acknowledges as too much focus on his work.

When I asked him to choose just three words to describe himself, Guido chose grateful, humble and happy. He understands that money and material possessions, while nice to have, are not the most important things in life, indeed not even essential to living a happy existence. They are two things that the Roman Stoic school of philosophy classed as preferred indifferents, meaning it’s preferable to have them but you should be indifferent as to whether you’ve got them or not, as it won’t hurt you then if you lose them. 

Marcus Aurelius said, “Most of what we say and do is not essential.  If you eliminate it, you’ll have more time, and more tranquillity.” I don’t know if Guido has read any of the works of this Roman statesman, but he is now applying very similar ideas to his life in Hua Hin. He is embracing parenthood with vigour and holds his family close to his heart. His father died when he was only 11, but impressed upon him the importance of honesty, and Guido is living his life with openness and integrity as a result of this potent influence.

But that is hopefully many, many years in the future.  Guido still wants to finally get the paperwork all finished so that he can marry his partner, they can raise their young son to be a man proud of his heritage and compassionate of others, he can teach the boy to drive in his beloved Alfa Romeo and open that last restaurant that is nagging at him.  Oh, and go whale-watching in the Arctic.