The voice of Francesco Longo, «Ciccio», still trembles when speaking about what happened: It’s not every day you win over the tastes (and hearts) of White House staff members. The thirty-four year old from Ostuni, owner of the sandwich shop in Rosamarina «Da Ciccio 2.0 – The flavors of Puglia», he was the point of reference for the American delegation during the G7 period.
First the American Consulate in Milan, then the American Embassy in Rome: little by little his sandwiches began to conquer overseas palates, and from there the start of a “word of mouth” that brought soldiers, secret services, marines and 250 NCC from Ciccio who, together with his partner Francesca Bocchinfuso, rolled up her sleeves since «they asked us if we only made sandwiches. We have a small room used for that, then I have a laboratory where I prepare the dough, but we decided to get to work.”
It all started towards the end of May, but the closer the meeting between the “greats of the Earth” got, the more the sandwich shop was stormed: “People came from all over America: from Washington, from San Francisco. We were in disbelief that we were dealing with people who were so close to the President. Francesca and I said to each other “it’s impossible, these people aren’t real”. It seemed like a film to us” explains Ciccio who, still incredulous, adds “they started giving us everything as a sign of recognition. I managed to get eight pins for each department; even an Air Force One pilot gave me his t-shirt with a handwritten note in Italian, where he thanked me for everything we did for them.”
The days of the G7 were the real “challenge” for Ciccio and Francesca: they had to prepare 150 meals: sandwiches, arancini and muffins for three days which “we cooked at night”.
Ciccio’s Ostuni customers, however, were never overshadowed, given that on Saturday «I still went out with the food truck, despite the fiery night. We didn’t want anyone to feel overlooked or privileged. We put out the numbers and everyone was waiting for their turn.” The American secret forces on one side and the holidaymakers of Rosa Marina on the other: “Even now, when I think about it, it seems like a dream.”
But Ciccio and Francesca’s American dream didn’t end here; in October, in fact, they will leave for Washington. «One day a secret service manager came to me and said “how about coming to America to open a place and work for us”. I asked him “excuse me, can you repeat that? In what sense?”, but the proposal was serious.”
Now the Ostuni couple is working to understand how to satisfy the needs of the Americans there, given that “they would like to find our products and our flavours”. In fact, they found Puglia “to eat” in Ciccio’s sandwiches: courgettes alla poora, meatballs, cured meats and the icing on the cake, dairy products. «Stracciatella and burrata were beyond all imagination for them. When I prepared the sandwiches they always asked for more, and I did it to make them happy, I wanted them to remember these flavors forever.”
But perhaps just the memory is not enough for the Americans, given that a small piece of Puglia will land overseas. “We are humble workers, we managed to make a mark, but I don’t feel like speaking on behalf of the entire region, there are those who have done and are doing more, but yes, it is a great satisfaction.” And if during the Americans’ stay in Puglia, the President has only heard of Ciccio’s sandwiches, now the objective “is to let him taste them, we would like to conquer his palate too”.
