Piero Topputo
Executive Chef & Owner
Piero Topputo grew up in Gravina Di Puglia, a small town in Southern Italy. His mother demonstrated early on that a satisfying meal in a warm, congenial setting is not only goodfor the body, but also nourishing for the soul. Topputo has strived to create that kind of experience for the people he’s served throughout his decades in the restaurant business. Inspired and mentored by his mother who “taught him everything she knows”, Topputo embarked on a formal education in Culinary Arts at the Hotellerie School in Matera. Upon graduating, he began working in food service at various hotels and restaurants throughout Italy and England. Topputo came to the United States in 1991 and settled in Los Angeles, where he began working for the Toscana Group as a cook at Oli’-Ola’ Restaurant in Pacific Palisades. He went on to open the group’s Toscana Restaurant in Encino and was eventually promoted to the position of Executive Chef at their Brentwood location. It was there that he met his friend and current business partner, Mario Sabatini. In 2009, Topputo took the position as Executive Chef of Caruso Affiliated’s Trattoria Amici at the Americana at Brand in Glendale, where he remained until 2014. Now, Topputo and Sabatini are able to fulfill their longstanding dream of partnering with the opening of Forma, which features updated versions of traditional foods that have been staples in his family throughout the years. When not in the kitchen at Forma, Topputo lives in West Los Angeles with his wife Gretchen, his three children and a menagerie of three dogs and two cats. ro Topputo grew up in Gravina Di Puglia, a small town in Southern Italy. His mother demonstrated early on that a satisfying meal in a warm, congenial setting is not only good for the body, but also nourishing for the soul. Topputo has strived to create that kind of experience for the people he’s served throughout his decades in the restaurant business. Inspired and mentored by his mother who “taught him everything she knows”, Topputo embarked on a formal education in Culinary