Joe Faro was raised by Sicilian parents whose love for food and culinary traditions moved with them from Italy in the late 1950's. Growing up, Joe scrubbed pots and filled cannolis at his parents' Italian-American bakery. As a young adult he started a gourmet pasta and sauce business, targeting restaurants and hotels across the country. After 18 years of growth and success, Nestle Foods bought Joe's business, sending him into early retirement. Joe recalls, "but — after an hour (of retirement) I realized my passion for Italian food was not finished." Joe teamed with his former Executive Chef, Jim Rogers, in a restaurant venture called Tuscan Kitchen in Salem, NH, where only scratch-made, artisan Italian food is served.