Francesco Mazzei is the Italian-British chef and restaurateur widely recognised as one of the defining proponents of southern Italian, particularly Calabrian, cookery in London across the past two decades. Born 22 March 1971 in Cerchiara di Calabria, a small village in the Calabria region of southern Italy, Mazzei trained at the Nazareno Calabria catering school and worked at leading European kitchens including at Eden Rome, the Dorchester London and Santini in London through the 1990s and early 2000s. He opened L’Anima in the City of London in 2008, one of the defining City Italian fine-dining restaurants, and has subsequently led or opened Sartoria in Mayfair, Radici in Islington, and Fiume at Battersea Power Station.
Mazzei’s 2025-2026 work centres on Mezzogiorno, the new southern Italian restaurant he opened in 2025 at the luxury Corinthia London hotel near Trafalgar Square. The restaurant has been described as an evolution of his Southern Soul style in London, pairing Calabrian and southern Italian cookery with British ingredients. His earlier restaurants Sartoria (Mayfair) and Radici (Islington) established him as one of London’s leading southern Italian chefs through the 2010s, and the Corinthia partnership announced in 2025 and opened during 2025 represents his next phase. He is the author of Mezzogiorno: Italy’s Deep South Revealed (2020) and continues television and cookbook work.
TL;DR
- Italian-British chef born 22 March 1971 in Cerchiara di Calabria, Calabria, Italy
- Trained at Nazareno Calabria catering school; Eden Rome; Dorchester London; Santini London
- Opened L’Anima in the City of London in 2008; led Sartoria Mayfair and Radici Islington
- Opened Fiume at Battersea Power Station in 2017
- 2025: Opens Mezzogiorno at Corinthia London hotel near Trafalgar Square
- Author of Mezzogiorno: Italy’s Deep South Revealed (2020)
Francesco Mazzei key facts
| Born | 22 March 1971, Cerchiara di Calabria, Calabria, Italy |
| Nationality | Italian-British |
| Training | Nazareno Calabria catering school; Eden Rome; Dorchester London; Santini London |
| Key earlier restaurants | L’Anima (City of London, opened 2008); Sartoria (Mayfair); Radici (Islington); Fiume (Battersea Power Station, 2017) |
| Current restaurant | Mezzogiorno at Corinthia London (opened 2025) |
| Signature cuisine | Calabrian and southern Italian cookery (Southern Soul style) |
| Cookbook | Mezzogiorno: Italy’s Deep South Revealed (2020) |
Early life and training of Francesco Mazzei
Mazzei was born on 22 March 1971 in Cerchiara di Calabria, a small village in the Pollino mountain range in the Calabria region of southern Italy. Calabria, the toe of the Italian boot, has a distinct culinary tradition built on mountain herbs, chilli, nduja, caciocavallo cheese, tropea onions, swordfish and the Mediterranean scrubland ingredients of the region. Mazzei grew up in this culinary environment and has described in multiple interviews the foraging tradition and the family cookery that formed his foundational approach.
Mazzei trained at the Nazareno Calabria catering school in Italy for formal qualifications, and subsequently worked at the Eden Hotel in Rome, one of the defining Italian luxury hotels. Through the 1990s he worked at leading European kitchens and moved to London to work at the Dorchester and at Santini, two of the defining London Italian luxury restaurants of the period. The London experience positioned him for subsequent senior head-chef and opening-chef roles across London Italian restaurants in the 2000s.
In 2008 Mazzei was one of the opening chefs at L’Anima in the City of London, which became one of the defining City Italian fine-dining restaurants of the period. He subsequently led Sartoria in Mayfair and opened Radici in Islington, building his reputation as the leading London chef specialising in Calabrian and southern Italian cookery. In 2017 he opened Fiume at Battersea Power Station, and in 2025 he opened Mezzogiorno at the Corinthia London hotel near Trafalgar Square.
Francesco Mazzei career timeline
- 22 March 1971: Born in Cerchiara di Calabria, Calabria, Italy
- Late 1980s: Trains at Nazareno Calabria catering school
- Early 1990s: Works at Eden Hotel Rome
- 1990s: Moves to London; works at the Dorchester and Santini
- Early 2000s: Continues London Italian-restaurant circuit
- 2008: Opens L’Anima in the City of London as opening chef
- 2011: Publishes first cookbook
- 2014: Leaves L’Anima to lead Sartoria in Mayfair
- 2015: Opens Radici in Islington
- 2017: Opens Fiume at Battersea Power Station
- 2020: Publishes Mezzogiorno: Italy’s Deep South Revealed cookbook
- 2021-2024: Continued operation of Sartoria, Radici and Fiume through and after Covid-19 pandemic
- 2025: Corinthia London announces partnership; Mezzogiorno restaurant opens at Corinthia London hotel near Trafalgar Square
- Late 2025: Focus shifts primarily to Mezzogiorno at Corinthia London
- 2026: Mezzogiorno at Corinthia London continues operating as Mazzei’s new flagship southern Italian restaurant
Francesco Mazzei signature style: Calabrian and southern Italian fine dining
Mazzei’s central argument, developed from the Calabrian childhood and refined across more than 20 years of London Italian restaurants, is that southern Italian cookery, particularly the distinct Calabrian tradition built on chilli, nduja, mountain herbs, swordfish, and Mediterranean scrubland ingredients, deserves to sit alongside northern Italian cookery at London fine-dining level. His restaurants across L’Anima, Sartoria, Radici, Fiume and the 2025 Mezzogiorno have all built on this argument, with the Mezzogiorno brand at Corinthia London explicitly framed as the Southern Soul evolution of his work.
The second defining element is the hotel-partnership and multi-restaurant operational model. Unlike peers who have remained with a single restaurant, Mazzei has operated as opening chef, head chef and restaurateur across multiple defining London Italian rooms across the 2000s and 2010s. The 2025 Corinthia London partnership for Mezzogiorno continues this pattern and brings him into the London hotel-dining category that Theo Randall (InterContinental) and Giorgio Locatelli (National Gallery) occupy.
The third pillar is the cookbook and television output. Mezzogiorno: Italy’s Deep South Revealed (2020) is the defining Mazzei cookbook and documents the Calabrian and southern Italian tradition for an English-language audience. His television appearances on UK and Italian cookery programmes and the 2017 Fiume Brexit-era interview position him alongside Italian-British peers including Gennaro Contaldo in the London Italian-chef conversation.
Notable Francesco Mazzei work
Several Mazzei restaurants have become reference points in London Italian fine dining. L’Anima in the City of London, which Mazzei opened in 2008, was one of the defining City Italian fine-dining restaurants of the late-2000s and 2010s. Sartoria in Mayfair and Radici in Islington under Mazzei’s leadership extended the Calabrian and southern Italian approach into two distinct London neighbourhoods. Fiume at Battersea Power Station, opened 2017, was one of the early Battersea Power Station redevelopment restaurants. Mezzogiorno at Corinthia London, opened 2025, is his new flagship and the evolution of his Southern Soul approach. Mazzei’s cookbook Mezzogiorno: Italy’s Deep South Revealed (2020) is the defining Mazzei publication.
Francesco Mazzei awards and recognition
- Early 1990s: Works at Eden Hotel Rome
- 1990s: Works at the Dorchester and Santini in London
- 2008: Opens L’Anima in the City of London as opening chef
- 2011: First cookbook published
- 2014: Leads Sartoria in Mayfair
- 2015: Opens Radici in Islington
- 2017: Opens Fiume at Battersea Power Station
- 2020: Publishes Mezzogiorno: Italy’s Deep South Revealed cookbook
- 2025: Corinthia London partnership announced; Mezzogiorno opens at Corinthia London hotel
- Late 2025: Focus primarily on Mezzogiorno at Corinthia London
- 2026: Mezzogiorno at Corinthia London continues as flagship
Francesco Mazzei impact on London Italian fine dining
Mazzei’s most concrete contribution is the establishment of Calabrian and southern Italian cookery at London fine-dining level across L’Anima (2008), Sartoria, Radici, Fiume (2017) and the 2025 Mezzogiorno at Corinthia London. Few London Italian chefs have sustained the specific focus on Calabrian cookery across comparable duration, and Mazzei has effectively served as the leading Calabrian-Italian chef in London across the past two decades.
The second contribution is the 2020 Mezzogiorno: Italy’s Deep South Revealed cookbook, which documents the Calabrian and southern Italian tradition for an English-language audience. The cookbook sits alongside the defining Gennaro Contaldo and Giorgio Locatelli cookbooks as one of the key regional-Italian references published in London in the past decade.
The third contribution is the 2025 Mezzogiorno opening at Corinthia London, which brings Mazzei into the London hotel-dining category alongside peers including Theo Randall at the InterContinental London Park Lane and Giorgio Locatelli at the National Gallery. Within the London Italian-chef cohort Mazzei sits alongside peers including Gennaro Contaldo as one of the defining current Italian-British chef figures.
Francesco Mazzei FAQ
What is Mezzogiorno?
Mezzogiorno is the new southern Italian restaurant Mazzei opened in 2025 at the luxury Corinthia London hotel near Trafalgar Square. It serves Calabrian and southern Italian cookery pairing Italian tradition with British ingredients, and has been described as the evolution of Mazzei’s Southern Soul style in London. It is also the title of his 2020 cookbook.
Where is Mazzei from?
Cerchiara di Calabria, a small village in the Pollino mountain range in the Calabria region of southern Italy. He was born there on 22 March 1971 and grew up in the Calabrian culinary tradition built on chilli, nduja, mountain herbs, swordfish and Mediterranean scrubland ingredients.
Did Mazzei open L’Anima?
Yes. Mazzei was one of the opening chefs at L’Anima in the City of London when it opened in 2008. L’Anima became one of the defining City Italian fine-dining restaurants of the late-2000s and 2010s. He left L’Anima in 2014 to lead Sartoria in Mayfair.
What are Radici and Fiume?
Radici is the southern Italian restaurant Mazzei opened in Islington in 2015. Fiume is the Italian restaurant Mazzei opened at Battersea Power Station in 2017, one of the early restaurants in the Battersea Power Station redevelopment. Both sit alongside Mezzogiorno at Corinthia London (2025) in the Mazzei portfolio.
What is Southern Soul?
The term Mazzei uses for his Calabrian and southern Italian approach in London. It frames the culinary philosophy around the distinct southern Italian ingredients, techniques and traditions that differ from the more commonly represented northern Italian cookery. The 2025 Mezzogiorno at Corinthia London has been described as the evolution of this Southern Soul style.
What is next for Francesco Mazzei
Mezzogiorno at Corinthia London continues operating in 2026 as Mazzei’s new flagship near Trafalgar Square. Continuing cookbook and television work is expected. His public Instagram (@francescomazzeichef) is the best source for current updates.
