Trabocchi was born in 1974 in Osimo, in the Marche region of Italy. He studied at the Istituto Alberghiero Panzine in Senigallia, working as a pastry chef in the summers. He then earned an apprenticeship with Gualtiero Marchesi at his eponymous restaurant in Milan. Trabocchi then worked in Moscow and in the United States at BiCE Ristorante in New York and in Washington, D.C. He moved to Spain to open a BiCE restaurant in Marbella and then to London.
Floriana, Maestro, and Fiamma (1998-2010)
Trabocchi won a Carlton London Restaurant Award as Best Young Chef of 1999 while working at Floriana in Knightsbridge, London. He was recruited back to the United States in 2001 by the Ritz-Carlton in Tysons Corner, Virginia, to open a new restaurant called Maestro. Maestro's menu featured two takes on Italian cuisine: La Tradizione, Trabocchi's version of traditional regional Italian dishes updated with high-quality products; and L'Evoluzione, Trabocchi's very modern interpretation of Italian cooking. In 2002, Trabocchi was recognized as one of America's best new chefs by Food & Wine magazine. In 2005, Trabocchi was named chef of the year by the Restaurant Association Metropolitan Washington. He was nominated for several James Beard Awards, finally winning Best Chef, Mid-Atlantic, in 2006. In 2006, he published a cookbook, Cucina of Le Marche. In 2007, Trabocchi moved to New York City to replace Michael White at Fiamma. While he was the chef, Fiamma earned three stars from the New York Timess food critic Frank Bruni, and a Michelin star in the 2009 Michelin Guide. After a sharp downturn in business following the financial crisis of 2007–2008, Fiamma abruptly closed. Trabocchi was named the executive chef of The Four Seasons Restaurant in 2010, but left after a few months. Trabocchi competed on Iron Chef America in 2009.
Fiola and restaurant group (2011-present)
Trabocchi returned to Washington, D.C., with the opening of Fiola in 2011, in the same space in Penn Quarter where he had been a chef at BiCE. Fiola opened to mixed reviews, but soon earned its place among the city's best restaurants. It won Best New Restaurant at the 2012 Restaurant Association of Metropolitan Washington Awards. Bon Appétit magazine named it one of the 50 best new restaurants in America. In 2014, Fiola won the RAMMY Award for Best Formal Dining Restaurant. In the inaugural Michelin Guide for Washington, D.C., Fiola received one Michelin star. The Restaurant Association of Metropolitan Washington again honored Trabocchi as the Chef of the Year in 2013. That year, he opened Casa Luca, a more casual restaurant named for his son. In 2014, Trabocchi opened Fiola Mare, a restaurant focused on Italian seafood, at Washington Harbour on the Georgetown waterfront. It soon became a popular destination for Washington's elite. President Barack Obama and his family dined there in August 2014. In 2015, Fiola Mare won the RAMMY Award for Best New Restaurant. Washingtonian Magazine named Fabio its 2015 Restaurateur of the Year. In 2016, Trabocchi opened Sfoglina, a casual pasta house in the Van Ness neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Another Sfoglina opened in October 2019 in Rosslyn, Virginia. In 2018, Casa Luca was renovated and re-branded as a branch of Sfoglina. In 2017, Trabocchi opened Del Mar, a fine-dining restaurant focused on Spanish coastal cuisine, at The Wharf, a new development on Washington's Southwest Waterfront. The 240-seat restaurant features a bi-level nautical-themed space with an open kitchen, towering ceilings, large windows overlooking the water and hand-painted forest green tiled walls. Early reviews have been positive, with the Washington Post's Tom Sietsema placing Del Mar #1 on his list of top ten restaurants for 2018. Trabocchi opened Fiola Miami in November 2018 to strong reviews. In April 2019, Trabocchi opened Fiola at Dopolavoro Venezia in the JW Marriott Hotel in Venice, Italy.
