The Italian Job
Born near Naples, Carmelo Rago came to Canada as a 10-year-old boy to reunite with his father who had moved earlier. The Rago family owned a flour mill in Italy and were doing well, but Carmelo’s dad wanted independence and some distance from his strict father. So he left his wife and two boys in Italy and struck out for the New World, in this case Edmonton.
Carmelo Rago felt the same pull for freedom when he left for Eastern Illinois University in Charleston on a soccer scholarship, then returned to become a teacher in Edmonton. A family decision to buy a restaurant in receivership led him into his current business. When Sorrento restaurant continued to lose money, Rago bought out family members, rebranded to Sorrentino’s, and expanded to eight locations. Carmelo Rago and his wife Stella have four boys; the eldest runs one of the Edmonton locations.
AV: Do you wake up thinking, I’d like a nice shrimp scampi?
A: [laughs] We were one of the first ones to have scampi on the menu.
What’s your idea of the best Italian food?
I go back to my favourites when I was a kid in Italy, tomato sauce and linguini.
What are the most popular dishes at Sorrentino’s?
Overall, it’s Cannelloni, followed by Penne Mediterranie made with carmelized sundried tomatoes and goat cheese.
Travel brought changes to your menu.
Yes, I learned Italian food was more than what I knew. We brought in pesto and people would say, “What’s this, can you add cream?” We added cream and then someone else would come in and say, “What’s this, this is not a pesto dish.”
So how does a physical education teacher become a restaurateur?
I was dating my wife. I had to go and pick up some money from a restaurant closing for my father-in-law [who sold food]. One of the relatives told me that I should get into the restaurant business. What did I know? I was a teacher.
The family wanted to sell after a year.
I told them I wanted to stay in. My father- in-law [Maurizio Saccomanno] said, “You’re a teacher, You don’t know anything about the restaurant business, you’ve never worked a day in your life.” I was naïve about the business.
What was the low point?
Best example I can give you: One day our pizza delivery guy didn’t show up, so I stepped in. It was cold and I couldn’t find the street addresses. I fell in down in the snow. And that’s when I asked myself what I was doing delivering pizzas. I’m a teacher. I could have just gone to my father-in-law and told him that I didn’t want to do it anymore.
What encouraged you to stay on?
I looked back and remembered hearing family stories from my father and grandfather about work ethics.
Your family thought you were too shy for the restaurant business.
At my restaurants I’m not shy. This is my house. When customers arrive, I shake their hands and take care of them.
You have eight restaurants. Who are your competitors?
I just focus on us. You have to be there all the time.
Do you have plans to expand?
No. It’s been difficult to find the right people. I think right now it would be wise if we put expansion plans on hold. We make our food from scratch. When staff shortages happen, we’re the first to get hit in fine dining.
What’s the hardest job to fill?
Dishwashers. No one wants to wash dishes.
But you have café plans.
We’re opened Caffe Sorrentino in Edmonton. It’s very European. It’s easy to run, doesn’t require as many people. We’re looking at franchising it. The coffee is awesome.
What’s most satisfying about your line of business?
For me it’s when we started opening more restaurants. But now, we’re getting more involved with the community, we have Sorrentino’s Compassion House, a house for ladies who come from outside Edmonton for breast cancer treatment. It’s very special for us.
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