È la storia di una squadra

Tigrane (the blonde) and Victor (the brunette):

"Since childhood, we've been drawn to Italy. We've eaten in dozens of cities and hundreds of trattorias – first with our families, then on our own. We've visited countless farms and small producers, experiencing authentic craftsmanship. We love good products, but even more, we love the people who make them with passion and without fuss." This is precisely where Big Mamma's origins lie – in the trattorie popolari, the lively, uncomplicated restaurants where you're welcomed with large plates, warm service, and lots of good humour.

And then there was that one day in Naples. We met Ciro, the youngest member of the Cristiano family – an outrageously talented chef who grew up in his parents' kitchen on Corso San Giovanni. At twelve, he was already standing at his cousin Pasquale Giordano's pizza oven – sitting on an old plastic box to get close enough to the wood-fired oven. Then came Ramon, El Gordo, or simply Jambon, with his charming Spanish-Italian accent and a smile that immediately made it clear: This guy's got it. Little by little, our family grew – Enrico, Lello, and many more joined us. Ciro brought his brother and a few Neapolitan cousins, and Ramon brought his unmistakable energy.

We opened our first restaurant, Mamma Gorda, in the south of France. We tinkered with our recipes, found our rhythm, our signature style. It was actually only meant to be a test run – but guests came, stayed, and wanted more. That was in April 2015.

Then came Paris. But in a city full of great Italian restaurants, our concept had to stand out. So we asked ourselves: What could we do differently? And we realised: There was no trattoria that was Italian from start to finish – with authentic ingredients directly from Italy and a team that not only knew Italy, but lived it. So we organised a delivery truck that brought fresh produce from our producers three times a week. We found an antique roaster to make our own coffee, started making our own pasta – and rented 20 apartments for our team.

On April 3rd at 12:15 p.m., we opened the doors of East Mamma – and suddenly people were queuing up. That's when we knew: good, typical Italian cuisine, served with a wink and in true chaos-la-dolce-vita style – that's exactly what everyone had been waiting for.

Since then, we've been discovering new facets of Italian cuisine, experimenting with classics, and drawing inspiration from our travels. Today, there are 28 Big Mamma trattorias in seven countries – from France to Monaco, UK, Spain, Germany, and Belgium, all the way to Italy. Each has its own character: sometimes traditional like La Bellezza in Birmingham, sometimes glamorous and eccentric like Gloria in the heart of Milan.

But our goal has always remained the same: To give you the most beautiful moment of your day.