Piero Topputo

The Honours

The plain achievement is the Executive Chef post at Forma, a role Topputo took on in 2015 and has held since. In a city where restaurant reputations can shift quickly, that date matters: it fixes his work at the restaurant across years of service rather than a brief appearance on a résumé. It suggests continuity, the steady accumulation of skill and trust, and a kitchen identity that has had time to become familiar. His recognition is tied to kitchen leadership and to a specific craft identity. At Forma, the title is closely bound to Cheese-based Italian pasta dishes, a specialty that gives diners a clear reason to know his name and a precise way to understand his cooking. The result is a reputation built not on noise but on a distinct, repeatable expression of technique, one that reads immediately on the plate and lingers in memory after the meal.

The Craft

The cooking at Forma is Contemporary Italian, with cheese treated as a central material rather than a garnish. Freshly cooked pasta is finished in large cheese wheels before serving, a technique that makes the final stage of the dish part of the restaurant’s identity. There is a theatrical quality to it, but it is grounded in substance: heat meeting cheese, pasta taking on richness at the last moment, and the service rhythm sharpening the dish into something complete. That focus gives Topputo’s food a narrow, memorable signature: Cheese-based Italian pasta dishes prepared in a way that connects process, ingredient, and plate. The point is not abstraction. It is pasta, heat, cheese, and timing, brought together in front of service. The appeal lies in the clarity of the idea and the confidence of its execution, a culinary language that is simple to describe and difficult to make feel fully alive without discipline.

The Career

Topputo moved to the United States in 1991, beginning the long arc of a career that would unfold through prominent kitchen posts. His career in American kitchens includes the Executive Chef role at Toscana in Brentwood, followed by the Executive Chef post at Trattoria Amici in Glendale, where his tenure ran until 2014. Each step builds toward the next, mapping a professional life shaped by movement, adaptation, and the gradual refinement of a point of view. In 2015, he became Executive Chef at Forma in Santa Monica, Los Angeles. That move brought his experience into a restaurant identified with Contemporary Italian cooking and a strong cheese focus, giving his work a clear specialty and a durable address. It is a fitting home for a chef whose strengths come into view through consistency: a long tenure, a defined style, and pasta that arrives with both warmth and intent.

FAQ What is Piero Topputo's current role? As of 2026, Piero Topputo is Executive Chef. What is Piero Topputo known for? Cheese-based Italian pasta dishes. Where did Piero Topputo train? Piero Topputo trained at culinary school in Matera.