Cesare Casella was born in a small town outside Lucca, Italy. He grew up in and around his family’s restaurant, called Il Vipore. As a young chef, he transformed Il Vipore into a world-class establishment, earning a well-deserved Michelin star. Since 1993, Casella has been working as a chef at several leading Italian restaurants in New York. He is the coauthor of Diary of a Tuscan Chef and Italian Cooking For Dummies.