About Us
Tradition Culture Passion
est. 2012 | Margaret River
Behind Salento Catering there are Anna and Ivan Zecca. Born and raised in a little village in the South of Italy originally, they both share the desire of exploring new places and the passion for the culinary traditions of their land. Enterprising young people, they start early to work in the catering service.
At the age of 15, Ivan was already working in one of the best pizzerias in Puglia, learning the tricks of the trade and the art of pizzaiolo (pizza maker) under the attentive sight of his master, Franco, also known as “the King of pizza”.
Ivan worked and attended different pizza making courses, learning and improving the acrobatic pizza techniques. In 2000 he moved to Northern Italy where he continued working as a pizza maker, always respecting the culinary traditions of his hometown. He lived in the Canary Islands for about 6 years, where he made Spanish people discover and appreciate his pizzas.
In 2004 he had his first experience as a pizza maker in Perth. He left Australia and came back to Perth in 2009 to settle down with Anna in 2010.
In February 2011 both started working at Swing & Roundabouts Winery in Yallingup, receiving the offer for a job sponsorship in the same year. They settled down in Margaret River, continuing working as managers at the pizzeria in the winery until April 2014. In the same year, they decided to make their dream come true and, while working at the winery, they started to run their own business, Salento Catering. In September 2012 the mobile woodfired pizza oven started driving through the Margaret River region and, since then, Salento Catering has continued growing.
Our clients often ask us: “what does Salento mean?”
Setting up a business from zero is a hard challenge and it is as hard as choosing its name. Ivan and Anna thought of different options for their company’s name before realizing that the choice was the name of their own land. The word “Salento” does not only refer to the place where Ivan and Anna were born, but also to all the things that belong to their land: their family, the culture and the traditions for the good food prepared as it used to be. What Salento Catering brings in every catering service is Anna and Ivan Zecca’s experience, professionalism and passion.
The Salento Catering’s pizza is made with simple and genuine ingredients: a thin and crunchy base, flavoured with the fresh ingredients of the traditional Italian menu. Salento Catering wants to bring to Australia the authentic Italian pizza: the pizza that all Italians eat when they are in an authentic Italian Pizzeria.