OUR TEAM

Brazil’s most emblematic Italian chef, now in Portugal

Rodolfo de Santis

Rodolfo was born in the south of Italy, in Puglia, but 12 years ago he decided to venture to Brazil and managed to become the best-known Italian chef in the country, being the founder of the Famiglia Nino Group and its 26 restaurants, created between 2015 and his exit from the project. In December of last year, he left the management of the restaurants and decided to accept Miguel Garcia’s invitation to join the project, signing the menu as consulting chef at Corleone, before setting up his next restaurant project in Brazil, scheduled for 2025/ 2026.

The two had already crossed paths at the Four Seasons in Geneva and later met again in Brazil. Miguel continued to follow Rodolfo’s work and was a regular client of his projects. They also shared an international business vision and the desire to work together one day. For Rodolfo, Cascais is now an international city that welcomes tourists from all over the world and is very popular with the Brazilian public.

For the Italian chef, it was also very important to be close to Italy, to have access to original products and in a country where it was possible to find high quality ingredients. At Corleone, he sets out to create a product cuisine that values quality and technique while respecting tradition. To achieve this, he has brought with him a trusted partner: chef Victor Vieira, who will be in charge of the kitchen for the opening. The menu will consist of classics of Italian cuisine, crafted with a chef’s hand and the simplicity that allows the best ingredients to shine.

Vi aspettavamo con ansia

The culinary entrepreneur

Miguel Garcia

With more than two decades of experience in restaurants and hotels, Miguel Garcia has worked with several iconic brands such as Four Seasons, Belmond, Relais & Chateaux and Leading Hotels of the World. He has been General Manager and Director of several different operations and brands, such as Belmond Copacabana Palace (Rio de Janeiro), Tivoli Mofarrej (São Paulo) and Tivoli Avenida da Liberdade (Lisbon). Until 2022 he was Regional Director of Operations in Portugal for all Minor Hotels’ Urban Hotels, where he managed the operations of 10 properties under 4 different brands (Tivoli Hotels, Anantara, Avani and NH Hotels).

In 2022, Miguel decided to pursue his dream of becoming an entrepreneur and acquired both Café de São Bento locations. In 2023, he opened Bougain Restaurant & Garden Bar, a success and a must-visit gastronomic destination in Cascais. Now he is launching a new project, also in Cascais, with a focus on product and traditional Italian cuisine, signed by a renowned chef with whom he had already crossed paths in Switzerland and Brazil and made plans to one day join forces on a project in Portugal.

The Master Host

Carlos Eduardo Silva

Cadú, as he is known, has over 20 years’ experience in the restaurant industry and has worked in some of the most renowned establishments in Brazil and South America.

He started out at Fasano, where he was Maître d’ and Manager of Gero Rio for six years, then joined Copacabana Palace where he was Manager of Mee Restaurant, the first Pan-Asian restaurant with a Michelin star in Rio de Janeiro.

He was also manager of the renowned Italian restaurant Cipriani, where, after a revamp, they achieved their first Michelin star. After this experience, Cadú took over the management of all the restaurants at the Belmond Cataratas de Iguaçú and the Oetker Collection Palácio Tangará in São Paulo.

In 2023 he returned to Portugal to lead the Bougain Restaurant & Garden Bar team with his vast experience and passion for exceptional service.