Honour to serve Pontiff (From Penarth Times)

Honour to serve Pontiff

A WELL-KNOWN Penarth family cooked for the Pope at Cardiff Castle when he visited the capital in 1982.

Simeon and Andrew Rabaiotti and their father Eddie served lunch for Pope John Paul II on June 2, 1982.

Eddie Rabaiotti, a staunch Catholic and owner of the Caprice restaurant in Penarth, was approached by church officials to cook the lunch, also attended by 90 senior Catholic church officials.

Andrew Rabaiotti, aged 23 at the time of the visit, said: "I think my father was approached because of the excellent reputation of the Caprice and on account of his involvement with the church.

"As a Catholic family we are extremely proud and honoured to have been chosen. It is a memory that all of us will cherish forever, but it was also a very private and personal experience.

"It was difficult to know what to prepare for the Pope because we had received little guidance on his dietary requirements. We tried to serve as much Welsh produce as possible."

The brothers, who now own Chandlers restaurant and the Rabaiotti Snack Bar on Penarth seafront, served the Pope Parma ham, salami and Krackwaska sausage with fresh asparagus, followed by poached sewin with hollandaise sauce, runner beans, courgettes and Pembrokeshire new potatoes.

The menu also included Krug Champagne.

Andrew added: "To make the experience more personal we used our family china dinner service, table cloths and napkins my wife's grandmother had crocheted, and cutlery that belonged to my grandmother.

"It was almost like entertaining him at home. I think we had about four weeks to plan everything. It was like a military operation. Dad went to London to get Krackwaska sausage from Harrods.

"After lunch the Pope signed the plate he had used which we still have as a keepsake.

"The night before we had fed 80 bishops at my father's restaurant."