Obituary

CARLO ROSSI

Carlo Joseph Rossi II passed away peacefully in his sleep at home in Newport Beach, California on July 30, 2024. He was just shy of his 92^nd birthday. Carlo suffered a massive stroke when he was only 46 years old. Doctors, family members, and even he never believed he would live so long. Carlo had a strong character and charming personality. With varied and unique interests, he was a true Renaissance man.

Carlo was born on August 23, 1932, in Fresno, California. He was raised there in a loving Italian immigrant family where good food was central. As a devout Catholic his whole life, he served as an altar boy at St. Alphonsus Catholic Church in Fresno proudly responding to the priest in Latin during mass. He attended San Joaquin Memorial High School for two years and then transferred to St. Ignatius High School in San Francisco. Forever drawn to the beautiful city, he would make San Francisco his home for more than 50 years. He earned a BS in Biology from the University of San Francisco and then an MS in Biology from the University of California San Francisco. Following college, he entered the US Army as a 2^nd Lieutenant, serving at Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio, Texas. After his honorable discharge, he moved back home to Fresno and opened his first restaurant Nino’s with his brother Cal. The two were a dynamic duo, engaging with customers to be sure that everyone enjoyed the very best food and service. It was at this restaurant that he met a beautiful young lady, Eileen Coltrell. The two started dating in September 1962, were engaged in November of that year, and were married  on April 20, 1963, a marriage that lasted 61 years. After the wedding, they moved to San Francisco. Carlo went on to work as the catering director at the famous Mark Hopkins Hotel in Nob Hill, and then he opened his own restaurant that he named “What this Country Needs”. Carlo poured his creative talents into the restaurant, designing its eclectic interior featuring women’s mannequin legs that served as table legs, and papier mâché sculptures decorating the windows. The menu rotated regularly featuring soups and sandwiches from around the world, serving businesspeople on their lunch hour. Unfortunately, because of his stroke, he was unable to keep his restaurants open.

After a few years of physical therapy, Carlo was able to work again and joined his brother Cal at his upscale boutique hotel, The Pacific Plaza on Union Square. The two created a fine dining establishment named The Donatello within the hotel. Carlo created the extensive wine list based on his thorough knowledge of California, French and Italian wines. He also contracted chefs from Italy to come and spend a few months at the Donatello where they created special menus for guests to enjoy.

Carlo had a wide variety of interests over his lifetime. He passed on his love of food and cooking to his older daughter Carmela. The two teamed up to create wonderful holiday meals and Carlo expertly guided Carmela in preparing the annual Palm Sunday macaroni, a special family recipe. As a young man, he took up sailing and he and Cal would sail in the SF bay, braving the wind and waves with their nautical expertise. He also enjoyed fly fishing, taking a trip to Burney, California with his younger daughter Elena. He collected classic cars including a 1920 Rolls Royce Silver Ghost Salamanca and a Roadster of the same era. His collection included a classic Lancia Aurelia and a Lancia Fulvia Zagato. Later in life, he discovered the world of hand-crafted O Scale model trains. He fully immersed himself in the hobby learning the history of the steam era and forging strong friendships with other train enthusiasts. His collection grew to over 200 cars and locomotives, and he dreamed of building his own layout one day. Throughout his life, he was an avid 49er fan and always looked forward to each football season. His favorite player was Nick Bosa, and he enjoyed talking about stats and projections with his daughter Elena. Carlo had an extensive record collection, so music always filled his home, including jazz, pop, and blue grass bands. He and Eileen even took disco lessons, dancing to the Top 40 tunes of the 1970’s.

Carlo had a wonderful sense of humor and was deeply loved by everyone he encountered. He was proud of his Italian heritage and his family, often bragging about his kids and grandkids to all his friends. In 2015, he and Eileen made the difficult decision to leave their cherished SF home featuring a backyard filled with rhododendrons and redwood trees and move to Newport Beach to be closer to their family. He is very much missed but will never be forgotten. He is survived by his adoring wife Eileen, daughter Carmela, sons-in-law Gabriel Monico and Jeff Lane, his four grandchildren, Nicolas, Sean, Jonathan, and Levi, his sister Anna Streicher, sister-in-law Sissy Rossi, nieces Ceslie Rossi and Meghan Streicher, and nephews John and Patrick Rossi. He was preceded in death by his beloved parents Tony and Mamie Rossi, his brother A. Cal Rossi, his brother-in-law Walter Streicher and his dearest daughter Elena Monico.