Piccolo Chef Founders Tina Fanelli Moraccini and Lilian Palmieri are mom-preneurs with a vision to make healthy cooking attainable and fun to children of all ages and walks of life.
 
They opened Piccolo Chef to teach children and their parents the art of healthy cooking and reconnecting with one another through all phases of the cooking process from the garden to the table. They deliver all of this with compelling recipes, highly nutritional ingredients, a kitchen with real tools and a nurturing team-based approach which respects the intelligence and abilities of children in different age groups.
 
The expanded Piccolo Chef team includes celebrity chef Celestino Drago, executive chef Reba Lawless Berdakin, chef Daniel Mauro Rossi and many others. Together, they offer classes, workshops, summer camps, private parties and more for children ages 3 to 17. Topics covered include all phases of the cooking process from garden to table, including etiquette classes to polish the experience.
 
Prior to opening Piccolo Chef in 2008, Tina and Lilian worked as a team for 12 years at the Istituto Italiano di Cultura in Los Angeles (Cultural Center of the Italian Consulate General) where they organized countless cultural events which underscored authentic Italian culture.
 
Fluent in English and Italian, Tina also has a background in teaching. She has taught at several state-run programs such as Options for Youth and Good Shepard Homeless Shelter for Children, as well as private centers such as Strategies for Living and Learning.
 
 
Lilian brings a strong background in international business, specifically in the area of film distribution and production. With a degree in foreign languages, she is fluent in five of them: Italian, French, Portuguese, Spanish and English.
 
Both Tina and Lilian reside in the Los Angeles area where they happily cook wonderful meals together with their families (almost) every day of the year.