Most consultants have not cooked a service in years. Gabriele Franco trained in Palermo, ran kitchens for MSC Cruises as executive chef, and opened La Botte D'Oro in Leichhardt in 2022 — which he still runs.
That matters for a practical reason. Advice written by someone who no longer works a section tends to be advice a section cannot execute. Menus that read well and cost badly. Prep systems that assume a brigade you do not have. Standards that hold for a fortnight and then quietly slip back.
The work here is the opposite: developed on your equipment, costed against your suppliers, taught to the people who will actually be cooking it on a Friday night.
Three kinds of engagement
From first call to standing on its own
A conversation, not a pitch
What the business is, what it's doing well, and what's actually going wrong. Half an hour is usually enough to know whether there's a job here and whether Chef Gabriele is the right person for it.
He comes and looks
A service in your kitchen, the menu, the numbers, the prep list. Most problems are visible in one shift — what gets ordered, what gets thrown away, and where the section falls behind.
A written scope and a price
What will change, in what order, over how long, and what it costs. No open-ended retainers unless you want one.
The work happens in your kitchen
Dishes developed on your equipment, costed against your suppliers, taught to your team. Nothing is handed over as a document nobody reads.
It holds without him
The measure of the job is whether the standard survives once he stops coming. That means written specs, trained staff, and a team that understands why, not just how.
Sydney first, Australia when it's worth the trip
Most engagements are in Sydney — the Inner West, the CBD, the Eastern Suburbs and the North Shore — because being in the kitchen regularly is what makes the work stick. For projects interstate, Chef Gabriele travels for the on-site blocks and runs the rest remotely. Menu development, costing and product work do not always need him standing in the room.
Questions owners actually ask
Do you only work with Italian restaurants?
No. Most of the work — costing a menu, fixing prep flow, training a section, developing a product — applies to any kitchen. The Italian expertise matters when a venue wants that identity to be genuine rather than decorative, but it isn't a requirement.
Do you consult outside Sydney?
Yes. Chef Gabriele is based in Sydney's Inner West and most engagements are in Sydney, but he travels interstate for project work and handles menu development, costing and product work remotely for clients elsewhere in Australia.
What does it cost?
It depends on the scope, which is why the second step is a visit rather than a quote. Short projects — a menu review, a costing exercise, a training block — are priced as a fixed fee. Longer relationships are usually monthly. You get the number in writing before anything starts.
How long does an engagement run?
A menu development or costing project is typically two to six weeks. Concept work for a new opening runs longer. Training is often a short intensive followed by a check-in a month later, because technique fades without a second pass.
Will you sign an NDA?
Yes, routinely — particularly for product development and pre-opening concept work. Nothing about a client's recipes, numbers or plans is discussed elsewhere.
Who actually does the work?
Chef Gabriele. There is no team of associates behind this. He is a working chef who runs his own restaurant, which is the reason to hire him and also why he only takes on a few engagements at a time.