Such enthusiasm and pride! But it's easy to see why. Chef Marcello Russodivito has a track record and reputation that's hard to beat.

He started Marcello's in Suffern almost 25 years ago, in the exact same spot, which he found by chance. The restaurant has grown and evolved over the years, as has Chef Marcello.

From a small town to Italy, to stops all over Europe and in Bermuda to hone his culinary skills, he then followed love to the U.S. where he started a family and put down roots. Over the years he has stuck to his own advice to keep rejuvenating himself and his businesses. Part restaurant owner … part teacher … cookbook author … TV and radio chef … award winner … and on top of that … generous to the community he lives in.

— Who did the cooking in your house when you were growing up?
My mother did the cooking … it was simple food … but she was a good cook. I have three brothers and one sister but I'm the only one who went into the food business.

— What got you started?
There was a place in my town, which was Riccia (in the region of Molise) … when I was 11 or 12 years old I was always there, and when they needed someone to take cappuccinos or pastries to the local stores I would go and get paid in tips, or an ice cream. Later on I would bring beers outside to their café … in Europe you could do that.

— How did your actual training begin?
When I was 14 I had to decide what kind of high school I wanted to go to. And there was an opportunity because I had lost my father … there were specialized schools for young people who had lost one or both parents … to study different things like language, culinary … I moved seven hours away to a culinary school in Tuscany. I did the five years in three, working every weekend, holiday and summer to get real experience in many different restaurants.

— And what other formal training have you had?
When I was 17 I went to Switzerland to do an internship, and then back to Italy. When I graduated I studied and worked in Germany, France, England … back in Italy a few times in between including cooking in the army … ending up in Bermuda … and then to New York.

— How did you end up in the U.S.?
When I was in Bermuda I met my wife, who was from New York. We decided to both work in Bermuda for a while. Then we went to Italy for a year. When we were ready to start a family I thought we should come back to New York where her family was. That was 1983. We lived in Nanuet.

— Where did you work before opening your own restaurants?
I worked in a few restaurants in New Jersey and Rockland, opening some for other people. I worked mostly in the front of the house … manager … maître d' …

— How did you end up opening your own place?
I was fired from a few places where I questioned things, or took more responsibility to make improvements than they wanted me to. All of the problems I had in those experiences reinforced that I wanted to have my own business. I didn't want to work for someone else any more.

The last place was a restaurant in Garnerville, and I was living in Nanuet. I started driving home and by accident ended up in Suffern. I stopped to buy the newspaper at what was then a stationery store, right here where the restaurant is today. It was a little store, 16 x 90, with a "for rent" sign. I went in and the owner and a Realtor were there. It had two bathrooms in the back. I was thinking about how many seats the main room would hold. Most places in the area back then were $25 a square foot, the same as now, and you'd need a minimum of 1,500, so that's $3,000 rent. This space was $700/month. I figured even if I don't open a restaurant, for that rent I could always have cooking classes, or do catering, even work somewhere else in the morning and do this at night. So that's how it started! And it took four months to get it ready. I opened the restaurant on June 25, 1986, the day before my birthday. I was 28.

— So … you are about to celebrate Marcello's 25^th anniversary. To what do you attribute your success?

I'm very proud that Marcello's is the oldest chef-owned restaurant in Rockland County in the same location. From the beginning, when I was at the culinary school in Tuscany, I learned both the back of the house, the kitchen, and the front. That's why I have been so successful. I don't look at the food from the point of view of only being a chef. I also listen to the customer, take the time to understand them, and work hard to give them what they want. Any chef today can do the Food Network experience … get the plates high … make it look completely different. But you have to know how to give the customers what they are asking for. If you say no too often, they won't come back. So our menu is 25 percent conservative … offering people what they want. But even a simple veal marsala from Marcello's has our own twist, with nice fresh, quality ingredients.

— How were you able to survive so long in this industry?
I think it's important to rejuvenate yourself. I focused for the first 10 years on building the foundation of the business. Then, after 10 years I had to decide if I wanted to grow. That's when I decided to move on and open my other restaurants — Ho-Ho-Kus Inn, WaterWheel, Caffe Dolce. That allowed me to learn more, and gave me the power to hire more people and create a management team to support the business. I owned five restaurants at one time, but I have always kept Marcello's as my flagship. Now I have Marcello's and Mamma Vittoria in Nutley, NJ, which I named after my mother. I also consult with other restaurants … revamping the menu  … maybe bringing in a new chef. Next year I will be starting a new chapter and doing more of this in other countries.

— Do you still work in the kitchen?
Oh yes! I work more now, but I work more freely. For example, for the first time I just took an afternoon off to go to a Yankee game.

But there are lot of things I'm involved in now in addition to the kitchen and running the restaurant itself. My local radio show. I'm launching a new website, and we have a great weekly newsletter. We just opened a Web store, and will also be linking to a line of foods that I recommend. We have cooking demos, classes and private parties in our Chef's Table room. We organize cooking trips to Italy. Also, I consult with people to plan their own trips to Italy. If they only want to know a few things they can go to the website where I recommend restaurants, how to rent a villa …

— Where do you get your inspiration for new creations and what are your food sources?

New menu items mostly come from the ingredients of the season. Every week we have someone who goes to the Hunts Point market and tells us what's in season, what's the best. In the summer I go to the Suffern Farmer's Market also. And we have our own little garden with herbs and vegetables. And top quality imported ingredients.

— You involved in a lot of local events and charities. What's coming up soon?
Peter Kelly and I are receiving awards from ARC of Rockland on Sept. 27 — at their Taste of Rockland event — for our 15 years of participation in the organization. On Oct. 3 I'll be doing cooking demos at the Congers Valley Cottage Rotary Italian Festival. And I'll be representing Rockland at the Columbus Day Parade on 5^th Avenue in New York.

— And you had a little taste of movie stardom. How did that come about?
They were shooting the movie Lymelife in northern New Jersey and the director Derik Martini came to Marcello's for dinner. He asked me if I wanted to prepare a buffet for a scene in the movie. So I did. Then they asked me to be in the movie as an Italian priest! I had to write my own script, arguing with a nun in Italian about the food she cooked, and I was in a scene at a confirmation. In the end, after the edits, all you saw was my arm. But I enjoyed the experience and they gave me a credit for the food preparation!

— When you eat out where do you like to go?
I tend to go to New York City. I like to see what Italian-born chefs are doing … like at Del Posto or Sandomenico or Da Umberto … Lidia's … depends on the region … and the French chefs like at Daniel … Bouley. For American food I might go to Gramercy Tavern … Union Square Café …

— What would you tell someone who wants to become a chef?
You need passion! Without passion you won't go far. And you have to be hungry for it … you will need to work weekends, long hours … you'll be sweating … it's not glamour. I enjoy the stress!

— What tips do you have for someone who wants make a special meal for someone?

Start with fresh ingredients and you'll have more chance of success. If you are a professional, you can take something that is not so good and make it good by using some good olive oil and some spices. But if you are not that good at it and you start with a bad tomato, it's still a bad tomato! If you start with a good tomato, or a good eggplant … then you don't have to do much.

 — Would you recommend any cookbooks aside from your own?

You can find mine on our website. One other book that I like to recommend for Italian cooking is The Silver Spoon.

Marcello's Ristorante
21 Lafayette Ave.
Suffern845-357-9108
www.marcellosgroup.com

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Melanzane Ripiene con Puree di Vegetali

Stuffed Eggplant with Vegetable

Serves 6

6 baby Italian eggplants
1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 onion, chopped
2 peppers, diced
2 zucchini, diced
1/4 cup parmigiano
1/2 cup ricotta
2 oz. parsley
Salt and pepper to taste

Take the eggplants and cut in half. With a spoon remove the inside and put on the side. Season the eggplant bottom with salt and pepper. In a sauté pan, add olive oil when hot. Sauté the onions, eggplant, peppers & zucchini.
Season it well and cook it for five minutes. When cooked, put the vegetable in a food processor. Add parmigiano, ricotta and parsley to taste. Let the stuffing cool off.
Take the stuffing and fill the eggplant bottom. Add a little parmigiano cheese on top. Bake it at 325° for 35 minutes.

Enjoy the eggplant as a side to a fish or meat dish or by itself with tomato sauce.

Wine suggestion: Sauvignon Blanc

Editor's note: Linda Kallman is a freelance writer/editor who in past lives has worked as a print journalist, in a TV newsroom, at an Internet start-up and who has run her own PR/Marketing agency in Nyack. She has called Rockland County home for 30+ years and recently moved to Haverstraw from Upper Nyack.