The legendary Moscardini Brothers cafe in Falkirk’s Manor Street, Scotland closed yesterday (Wednesday). Just days before he celebrates his 67th birthday, owner Paul Moscardini has battered his last fish and chipped his last potato and decided it is time to retire. His decision brings to an end his family’s business connection with the town that stretches back an amazing 116 years. Paul’s grandfather Leopaldi and two great uncles started it all in 1893 when they emigrated to Scotland from their home village of Barga in the Tuscany region of Italy. They were all working in the local marble mines when they decided to seek their fortune elsewhere.
Many of their neighbours looked to America to start a new life, but the Moscardini boys opted for Falkirk.
Within a few years they had established a chain of 10 cafes, three in Falkirk High Street alone, and an empire stretching across the district from Larbert to Avonbridge built on the back of their traditional fish teas, homemade ice cream, ginger beer and champagne cider.
Leopaldi married and produced a family of four, Paul’s dad Primo, Joe, Peter and Anita.
As soon as they were old enough, the sons all had hands-on interests in the business and, by the time Leopaldi retired and moved back to Italy,
Primo and Joe were running Manor Street and Peter the West End Cafe.
Paul was born in 1942, and in the true tradition of Italian family life, was involved in Moscardini Brothers at an early age, peeling potatoes in the Manor Street kitchen for a “bob a job” at the age of eight.
He was later educated at a boarding school in the Highlands before graduating from the famous Athol Crescent Catering College in Edinburgh.
His oldest sister Anne trained as a nun and his other two big sisters, Maria and Elizabeth, married and moved to America to live.
He joined the firm in 1970 and was made a partner in 1972 before taking over the business, by this time solely based in Manor Street, with Anne when Primo retired in 1977.
He fondly remembers the early days, the hustle and bustle and the steady coming and going of customers who became family friends.
He said: “We have second and third generations of customers coming in every day.
”Children who came for a chip tea with their parents still come back today, many with their children and grandchildren.”
The business, including the famous Moscardini Brothers name has been sold to a family from Dundee.
They are, of course, Italian with a solid reputation in the industry.
Paul would like to see his family name continue to hang above the Manor Street door and the wonderful interior complete with high back booths and 100-year-old soda fountain retained, but “business is business” and it is up to the new owners to decide.
Meanwhile, retirement for Paul means spending more quality time with his wife Mary.
Other than that, no plans have been set in tablets of stone although he does admit to thinking now might be as good a time as any to finally do something he probably should have done years ago – travel to Italy and visit the village his relatives left all these years ago to make the Moscardini name in Falkirk as famous as it has become.
Article by Stuart Barber – Falkirk Herald
