About the creator behind Neuronio Tomate
From Brazilian family rituals to European kitchens
The story of Neuronio Tomate begins in Brazil, in an Italian family shaped by post-World War II immigration. Food was always present – not only as something to eat, but as a ritual, a memory and a way of keeping people close.
Making pasta together on Sundays was part of family life. Hands covered in flour, conversations around the table, the smell of sauce, the rhythm of repetition – these small domestic scenes created a deep connection with food. But next to the warmth of those moments, there were also stories from wartime, when food was not abundant and every meal had value.
This contrast became important later: the joy of sharing food and the awareness that food should never be taken for granted.
A first career, then a different calling
At the beginning, the professional path did not lead directly to the kitchen. It started in marketing, during a time when the field was growing strongly in South America. But in 2006, after moving to London to learn English, life opened another door: film studies.
Cinema changed the way of seeing the world. Film teaches attention. It teaches that every frame has meaning, every detail matters and every story has something behind it. During that period in England, questions about sustainability, food production and the future of the planet became impossible to ignore.
Food was no longer only a personal memory. It became a global question.
The beginning of a plant-based journey
After returning to Brazil, the decision to move toward vegetarian and plant-based eating came naturally. It was connected to climate awareness, food systems and the wish to live in a more responsible way.
But there was one important challenge: how to eat more consciously without losing pleasure?
That question became the beginning of a creative kitchen. New recipes were developed at home – plant-based dishes that still had comfort, intensity, flavour and emotional connection. Friends started tasting them and asking for more. What began as a personal experiment became a professional path.
Comida Sustentável - a sustainable food cycle
This led to the creation of Comida Sustentável, a sustainable food business in Brazil. The project prepared ready-to-go plant-based meals and delivered them to customers, but it was much more than a food delivery service.
The ingredients came from small organic family farms. The recipes were plant-based. The leftovers returned to the fields to feed the soil again. It was a whole cycle designed around sustainability, care and responsibility.
For seven years, this project proved that food could be delicious, practical and conscious at the same time.
Europe, professional kitchens and a new creative stage
After the difficult economic period during the pandemic, Comida Sustentável had to close. In 2022, a new opportunity appeared: working as a vegan chef in a five-star hotel in the Austrian Alps.
This brought the journey back to Europe. After Austria came Berlin, a city with a strong vegan and plant-based food scene. Working in different kitchens, not only vegan ones, helped develop more techniques, understand different teams and grow as a chef.
Today, after 12 years inside kitchens, the work continues – but with a wider intention.
More than a chef
Neuronio Tomate was born from the need to go beyond the pots. It is the voice of a chef, but also of a creator, thinker and storyteller.
The project is open to chef services, food concepts, artistic collaborations, writing, speaking, podcast ideas, interviews and creative projects that use food as a starting point for larger conversations.
Because food is connected to everything: body, memory, family, climate, work, culture and imagination.
A personal story can become a shared experience.
From Brazil to Europe, from film to kitchens, from memory to creation – Neuronio Tomate is ready to become part of your next project.