Grand Magazine - September/October 2008 - (Page 59)

PHOTOGRAPHY BY CLAUDE E. SPRIGGS staff and machines to make so many kinds of pasta: linguine, spaghettini, rigatoni, orzo, capellini, fusilli, penne, lasagna—18 varieties of the classic egg noodle recipes and five varieties of the new, whole-wheat pasta. “When people hear the word ‘factory,’ they think of some huge operation,” Sandy says. “We’re like the local coffee shop compared to Starbucks. We make it like in the old country, by hand, by a few people.” Is that going to change? Alex has his opinions. “My idea would be to expand it—but you have to be careful not to lose the quality and the sense of connection between people.” “This business, it is about connection, y’know?” Sandy emphasizes. “You have to have a certain loyalty to people. You have to give, not just take.” But then, he remembers the changes he made when he took over from Edoardo. “Just like cooking,” he says, “each generation puts a little ‘twist’ on the old recipes. Each generation modifies the setup.” Says Alex, “I love hearing of my grandfather’s childhood in Hungary and of the early days of the pasta business in San Francisco. My grandfather, my great-grandfather, they’re a part of old North Beach. Grandpa knows all the old business owners, the restaurateurs. When we go to North Beach, everyone knows us, everyone knows me and asks about my grandfather.” Coming from a war-torn past, Sandy is deeply appreciative of the new roots of his family. Sandy was not able to revisit Hungary until after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991; his mother, whom he had last seen the night he slipped away from the Communists and escaped to Western Europe, died in 1980. “I never knew my grandfather,” he reflects. “Or my father, actually—he died in the war.” (Moved by his grandfather’s stories, Alex made a video of Sandy describing his experiences in the ’56 revolution and posted it on YouTube.) “I love being with Grandpa,” Alex says. “When I’m with him, I’m in the moment. My grandparents, they live the ‘good life’: food, friends, a bottle of wine. You don’t see 18-yearolds gathering around a good bottle of wine and discussing national politics. I love that I was brought up that way. And that’s how I want to bring up my own kids.” G More to the story: page 68. Above: Sandy (right) and Alex test moisture levels in the drying room. At left: Fresh-egg rigatoni; at right, Alex prepares to move pallets of California semolina flour. Above: Alex’s great-grandfather, factory founder Edoardo Morettoni. Two of the women in this 1978 photograph are still with the business. SEPTEMBER OCTOBER 2008 GRAND 59

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Grand Magazine - September/October 2008

Grand Magazine- September/October 2008 Grand View:�Priceless Contents Isn't it Grand?: Picture Perfect Winners!: GRANDparent of the Year Grand Central Toddler Town:�Grand-proofing Ask Grand:�Two Tired Tips on Teens: The Bar Mitzvah Trips Just So We Know:�BPA Not Our BFF Full House-Full Heart-Full Time:�Confessions of a Backyard Grand Grandbloggers: It Takes a Village Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner? Family + Food = Fun On the Cover: Nora Roberts A Fine Romance Everything Was Fine Until You Showed Up Happy Big Sister Day Looking Grand:�Elementary, My Dear All in the Family:�Pasta, Present and Future Reunions:�Doubleheader Inspirations:�Grandpa's Violin Grand Bazaar More to the Story Grand Finale:�Long Ago Under the Sun

Grand Magazine - September/October 2008

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