Biography
Gino was born into a large family in Torre del Greco, Napoli, in the south of Italy. The food they ate was very traditional – simple recipes based on fresh and healthy fruit, vegetables, fish and meat.
“My grandfather said that a good recipe doesn’t need lots and lots of ingredients because if the ingredients are top quality and full of flavour, why would you want to cover up or change their taste?”
A good point, well-made – and it’s a philosophy Gino has stuck to since he first started in the kitchen. When he was 11, he walked into his grandfather’s restaurant for the first time and decided that cooking was for him.
After training at the Luigi de Medici Catering College, Gino came to London at 19 and worked at The Orchard Restaurant in Hampstead and then at the Cambio restaurant in Surrey.
His knowledge and skill in blending olive oils brought him to the notice of Great Food Live on UKTV Food … and a TV chef was born!
With a cheeky wit and exceptional talent, he was soon guesting on the classic Ready, Steady Cook – and many more programmes, including Gino vs Britain, followed. The nation took took him to their hearts when he won I’m A Celebrity – Get Me Out Of Here by a huge margin and he has become a firm TV favourite through his appearances on This Morning, There’s No Taste Like Home, Let’s Do Lunch with Gino & Mel, five primetime series of Gino’s Italian Escape and everybody’s guilty pleasure, Celebrity Juice.
Gino is the author of several best-selling books including Fantastico!, Gino’s Pasta, Italian Home Baking, Gino’s Italian Escape – which accompanies the TV series exploring Italian food and the sites of Italy – and Pronto!
Gino is also a rapidly expanding restaurateur: My Pasta Bar, for the fast-casual diner, can be found at three locations in Central London while full-service restaurants – Gino D’Acampo – My Restaurant – are currently bringing typically fantastico Italian food to diners in Manchester, Leeds, Liverpool, Harrogate and London’s Camden and Euston Station, with several new locations waiting in the wings.
He is married to Jessica and they have three children, Luciano, Rocco and Mia.
