Passionate about authentic Italian cuisine? Traveling near Fort Wayne, Indiana? Plan on dining at The Italian Connection, established by head chef, Alex Fiato. Not surprisingly, Chef Fiato became passionate about Italian food and cooking as a child.

He said that he and his siblings grew up around food, and of course, as an Italian, it was always about Italian cuisine, which is like a religion. Both his mother and grandmother were very good home cooks. Even his father got involved in kitchen duties. “My dad went mushroom hunting,” he said, “and he made sausages with mushrooms.”