In October we shall be celebrating the 20th anniversary of our life in Kibworth!
We moved in August 1999 and within 2 short months had turned around the old David Snelling Violins shop into our first restaurant, Firenze!
Our girls were only 1 and 4 years old and we Polis lived upstairs in the flat. . . we thought it would be small affair this new business of ours, just the two of us and a few part-timers to help out at weekends! We thought we would open mid-week so we would not be too busy, revving up for the weekend, which we hoped would be a little busier!!
Hmmmm . . . the restaurant was rammed, from the day we opened, 26th October, to the day we closed for Christmas, 23rd December . . . we were welcomed with open arms, encouraged by those who knew us from the Welford Place days in Leicester, and quickly supported by our new community here in Kibworth!
We also quickly recognised the need for more staff, babysitters, cleaners and bookkeepers . . . . to start with we tried to do it all ourselves but that was not going to work!!!
From those first humble beginnings, we have enjoyed the praise and attention of the guides and the foodie journalists, but most importantly, the enthusiasm of our regulars, which is a list that is forever and still growing.
2007 saw the arrival of Boboli and 2013 the exciting rebrand of Firenze to The Lighthouse, and currently we have about 50 local people on our payroll!!!!
So, 20 years on, we can reflect on what has been a hell of a ride! With gratitude and affection for the awards, accolades, staff, customers and altogether wonderful people and memories that we have been blessed with . . .
Grazie Mille
Sarah & Lino x
20th Anniversary Quiz
Question 2: What year did we open Firenze?
Just answer in the comments below and we’ll enter you into our prize draw celebrating our 20th anniversary! (Please be sure to put your email address on your comment so that we can contact you if you’re one of our lucky winners)
Look out for other 20th anniversary quiz questions on our future blog posts. Prize draw winners to be announced on 1st January 2020.