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“Mark is a true food lover, driven by his passion for outdoor cooking and his incredible culinary heritage. His ability to turn simple, fresh ingredients into bold, unforgettable dishes is inspiring. I’m super excited to dive into his new cookbook”
Kwoklyn Wan
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How it all started
Having been brought up by an Italian/English family I had a real mixture of cuisines thrown at me growing up. My English mother loved to cook hearty home-made English stews, casseroles etc and my Italian Nonna would cook authentic southern Italian family meals such as a variety of pasta dishes, slow cooked meats and incredible cakes. The one thing in common was both sides of the family cooked with fresh produce and ingredients and with passion.
Since the age of 3 I remember spending weekends at my Nonna’s house, which is where all 20+ family members would gather for a traditional Sunday feast. Every week without fail! My earliest memories are waking up early on a Sunday to the incredible aroma of ragu. Preperations for the feast had already begun! I remember being obsessed with the smells and I would run to Nonna and ask how she made that sauce smell and taste so good! My passion for cooking had begun and for years I would linger in the kitchen where my Nonna and Aunties would be running around making magic happen. To be honest I still do!
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Minori, Italy
Many chefs train in Minori but one of it’s most famous is Jamie Oliver who was mentored by Genaro Contaldo. Generao Contaldo is afamily friend who worked with my grandfather when he was a chef.
Another famous chef from Minori is Ursula Ferrigno who is known for her cooking lessons across the UK and Italy, food blogging and her amazing Italian cookbooks. Ursula is a member of my family on my Nonna’s side.
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Campervans, Love & Travel
In 2018 when I met Sophie everything went “next level”. Dating was complicated as Sophie had young children and so we found date night in the van was a great solution. It was time for me to show off my passion for cooking so regular campervan fine dining it was!
Campervan cooking certainly has its challenges as with any tiny kitchen so the familiar carnage in the kitchen urgently needed to be an organised carnage. Alongside being organised I realised there needed to be constant adaptions to recipes to work with the resources available. This was where the campervan culinary website vanlifeeats.com began.
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Street Food & World Cuisine
I was once told “don’t waste money on culinary school unless you want to work in a kitchen, instead use your money to explore flavours from around the world and educate your pallet.”
World food has always been my thing, going to new places, trying new flavours and learning new cooking techniques. Traveling around in a campervan was the perfect way to enjoy these culinary adventures.
Although heavily influenced by my Italian heritage, my passion is with street food from all over the globe. You’ll often see me cooking authentic recipes and using new ingredients. Sometimes these recipes need to be adapted to suit the English supermarkets and home cooking methods. So my aim is to recreate these dishes as authentically as possible and to introduce people to new flavours and exciting recipes from around the world.
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📍 18th-21st Feb – Caravan & Motorhome Show | NEC, Birmingham
📍 14th-15th Mar – The Yorkshire Motorhome & Campervan Show | Yorkshire Events Centre, Harrogate
📍 24th / 26th / 28th / 31st Mar – The Ideal Home Show | Olympia, London
📍 3rd-5th May – Campervan Campout | South of England Showground, Haywards Heath
📍 10th-11th May – The Great British Food Festival | Arley Hall, Cheshire
📍 16th-18th May – The Southern Motorhome & Campervan Show | Newbury Showground, Newbury
📍 30th May-1st Jun – Vanlife Festival | West Midlands Showground, Shrewsbury
📍 14th-15th Jun – The Great British Food Festival | Holdenby House, Northampton
📍 21st-22nd Jun – The Great British Food Festival | Dinton Pastures, Berkshire
📍 18th-20th Jul – The Norfolk Motorhome & Campervan Show | Norfolk Showground, Norfolk
📍 2nd Aug – The East Dorset 40th Celebration Rally | Warren Park Farm, Alderholt
📍 15th-17th Aug – The Western Motorhome & Campervan Show | The Three Counties Showground, Malvern
📍 22nd-24th Aug – Vanlife Eats Festival | Dummer Down Farm, Basingstoke
📍 5th-7th Sept – The South West Motorhome & Campervan Show | Bath and West Showground, Shepton Mallet
📍 19th-21st Sept – The Motorhome & Campervan Show | Lincolnshire Showground, Lincoln
📍 16th-17th Oct – Caravan & Motorhome Show | NEC, Birmingham
📍 3rd-5th Oct – The Getaway Show | P&J Live, Aberdeen
📍 24th – 30th Nov – The Ideal Home Show | Olympia, London
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