About Us
 My name is Engjell Vrapi and I'm 25 years old. I'm from Roskovec - Fier, Albania. I grew up in Roskovec until I finished the 8th grade and then immigrated to Italy on my own to look for work opportunities. I ended up being taken in by a school for boys without families, "Fondazione il Faro", in Rome. There, they tried to integrate us into the community by teaching us the Italian language as well as giving us technical skills like making pizza, cutting hair, carpentry and computer programming. After a year at the school, I found my first job as a waiter in a vegetarian restaurant. The work was challenging and I loved it. I waited tables for the next six years, working at renowned Roman restaurants like Al Presidente and Osteria dell' Anima and learning a great deal about Italian food and wine in the process. In 2004, I met my wife Kaleigh, who was a student traveling and studying in Rome. We were married and later had a beautiful baby girl, Fiona. In 2006, we moved back to the U.S., where I continued looking for positions as a waiter, but instead was offered a job in the kitchen at "La Provence" Restaurant, owned by Chef Marc Guizol, in Bigfork, Montana (www.bigforklaprovence.com). At La Provence, a new fire started inside me to become a Chef. I had worked as a waiter for 6 years without realizing that my true calling was in the kitchen. I decided to attend the New England Culinary Institute (www.neci.edu) in Vermont, where I earned a degree in Culinary Arts. In 2008, I did an internship with Chef David Kinch at Manresa, a 2 star Michelin-rated restaurant, (www.manresarestaurant.com) in Los Gatos, California. I spent the majority of my internship working as the assistant pastry chef and learned an incredible amount about the finer aspects of baking and pastries. I now live in Chicago with my family and we have started our own gourmet chocolates and sweets business. Thank you everyone for your support!! Enjoy! |
