Gabriella Mari

Gabriella was born in Florence on 16th of May 1961. Ever since she was a child she has always been fascinated by the way her grandmother, her great-grandmother and aunt prepared the typical old-style Tuscan dishes, and even now Gabriella tries to convey her great interest and love for the history and culture of cooking and of eating, as well as her long teaching experience.

After high school and University, where she studied Physics, Gabriella began her long journey into the world of cooking. She attended her first cooking courses in Florence (1983) at the "Scuola di Arte Culinaria Cordon Bleu" whose director at the time was Mrs. Enrica Jarrat.

When she completed all the courses, she began a teacher training course at the "Scuola di Arte Culinaria Cordon Bleu" in Rome. Her trainers were Marina Tozzi, Luciana Rocchetti, Fernanda Mariani e Alba Alleva.

In addition to all the cooking and teaching training courses, Gabriella has attended all the wine tasting courses which she completed in January 1985. Since then she has been a member of A.I.S., Italian Association of Wine Connoisseurs.

In 1985 she open the Florentine site of "Scuola di Arte Culinaria Cordon Bleu" together with Cristina Blasi, a friend, a course companion and business partner.

Since 1985 Cristina and Gabriella's professional career have gone the same direction.