Tributes have been paid to much-loved Southport restaurateur Erasmo Grossi.
Mr Grossi died this week aged 84 years old, surrounded by his family.
He and his family opened the thriving casa italia restaurant on Lord Street in Southport in 1978 and ran it for 25 years, welcoming generations of local families and many celebrities.
At the time the venue opened, iItalian food was something of a novelty both in the town and across the UK.
Mr Grossi was subsequently awarded the prestigious Cavaliere della Republica Italiana, the Italian equivalent of a knighthood, for his services to food.
His daughter Giovanna Grossi said: “It is with immense sadness that Erasmo Grossi, Cavaliere della Republica Italiana, 84 years, passed away peacefully with his family around him on Wednesday (27th August 2025), after an amazing, full and incredible life filled with joy and a deep love for his family. Our world has crashed and our hearts are truly broken.
“Daddy, to Nick, Simon and I, he was the best father we could ever have wished for. He was kind, caring, loving, funny, inspiring and there was nothing we loved more than spending time in his company.
“He was the absolute best nonno to Luca and Matteo; they adored him and his love for them was magical to see. Perhaps most visibly, he was a devoted, loving and truly amazing husband to our mother, Eileen and they shared the most wonderful 62 years together. He absolutely adored her and the look in his eyes for her told a love story that few experience in a lifetime.
“As a family, we will first celebrate his life in Italy, alongside his beloved brother Giuseppe and all of our relations and friends, in Monticelli, Esperia; the village where he began his life.
“A full funeral and requiem mass will later follow at 12 noon on Friday 19th September at St Marie’s Church, Seabank Road, Southport, followed by a burial at Liverpool Road cemetery and a reception to celebrate his life at Hillside Golf Course.
“Family flowers only please. Donations to Action for Pulmonary Fibrosis. Funeral arrangements are being handled by M Rushton, Marshide Road, Southport.
“From Eileen, Giovanna, Nick, Simon, Louise, Sharon, Luca and Matteo, thank you for your expressions of sympathy and outpouring of grief, for the man who meant the absolute world to them.
“We would particularly like to express our sincere thanks to the team on Ward 14B at Southport Hospital, who pulled out all the stops to look after Erasmo in his final days and to Dr Edoardo Cervoni at The Grange Surgery, who went totally above and beyond to support Erasmo over the last few years.”
In 1997, Erasmo Grossi was awarded the prestigious Cavalieri della Republic at The Quirinale Palace in Rome by President Scalfaro.
That wasn’t his only claim to fame – in his younger days he appeared as an extra in the legendary Ben Hur and Cleopatra movies.
His son, Nick Grossi, said: “Dad was born in Monticelli, a small village in Lazio in Italy on 8 October 1940.
“He was the third of four children to my grandparents Giovanni and Annunziata and their first son.
“When he was 19 he went to Rome and started working in a hotel in the Parioli district, a chic area of the city.
“At the time they were filming Ben Hur and later Cleopatra at Cinecittà and to earn some extra money to fund a trip to England, Dad applied to be an extra in both and was successful.
“By 1962 he had successfully saved the money to come to England and his first stop was Southport.”
Giovanna Grossi said: “Dad fell in love with the town, working at The Prince of Wales, which was considered one of the top hotels in the north of England in those days and at The Carlton Hotel for Frank and Blanche Neame.
“He met my mum Eileen in 1964 and they later married and moved to Heaton Moor, where he opened a restaurant with a friend.
“He later moved to Cheshire to manage a restaurant which became a really huge success, so much so that I still see references to how loved it was in Dad’s era on the town’s local Facebook Page all these years on.
“In 1972 Frank Neame, who by then owned The Curzon Grill on Lord Street in Southport, called him and said ‘We would like to retire and we want to sell the restaurant to you’.
“So later that year Dad moved Mum, my brother Nick, and I to Southport, delighted to return to the town he loved so much. In 1976 our brother Simon came along and made our family complete.
“In 1978 Dad realised another dream of owning an Italian restaurant and opened Casa Italia on Lord Street in Southport.
“We welcomed so many great loyal customers over those years who we still remember fondly today and we had the best staff on our team who all played their part in creating a very successful restaurant.
“In 1997, Dad was honoured when he was awarded Cavalieri della Republic at The Quirinale Palace in Rome by President Scalfaro. It’s the equivalent of a knighthood in this country and it was in recognition of all his efforts in promoting Italian cuisine and culture overseas.
“In 2003 after a happy successful career in hospitality, spanning over 40 years, Dad finally decided to retire.
“Despite my brothers opening their own restaurant in London and me setting up my own hospitality consultancy business in the South East, Dad chose to continue living in Southport as he loved the town so much.”
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