Who is Vittorio Assaf? Meet the Serafina co-founder seen kissing Aoki Lee Simmons

Vittorio Assaf has taken the restaurant world by storm over the last few decades.

The dad of two began trending online for something other than his business in April 2024, as photos of Assaf and Aoki Lee Simmons lit the internet on fire due to their 44-year age gap.

Find out more about Assaf below.

Vittorio Assaf is a restauranteur

Vittorio Assaf is a co-founder of the Serafina Restaurant Group. Vittorio Assaf/Instagram He and Fabio Granato came up with the idea of opening a restaurant when they were lost at sea. Getty Images for Serafina

Assaf and Fabio Granato are founders of the Serafina Restaurant Group, an idea they derived when they were lost at sea.

In 1994, the friends were two and half hours outside New York in Hampton Bays when they went for an evening boat ride. During a strong wind, one of the sails snapped and they couldn’t get back to shore. They were discovered by a helicopter the next day.

During the hours of waiting for help, Assaf and Granato promised each other they would open a restaurant and serve the best Italian pizza and pasta in the world.

They founded highly acclaimed Serafina Fabulous Pizza in 1995. Vittorio Assaf/Instagram Following the success of their first Serafina restaurant, the duo expanded the Serafina brand across three continents, with dozens of restaurants in the United States and worldwide. vittorioserafina/Instagram

The next year they launched the highly acclaimed Serafina Fabulous Pizza on the Upper East Side in New York City.

“At 4 years old I started cooking with my grandmother at her Wednesday night dinner parties for 40 to 50 people,” Assaf told Natfluence.

“By the age of 12, my grandmother was getting older and I took over the duty of cooking for all the guests by myself. From there, it was easy to gain the knowledge of the culinary world.”

Following the success of their first Serafina restaurant, the duo expanded the Serafina brand across three continents, with dozens of restaurants in the United States and worldwide.

Vittorio Assaf’s past relationship history

Assaf was married to Charlotte Bonstrom for 20 years and they share two kids. Patrick McMullan via Getty Images Bonstrom left Assaf after having an affair with her twin sister’s ex-husband, Thierry Gillier. Vittorio Assaf/Instagram

Assaf made headlines in 2021 when his then-wife of over 20 years, Charlotte Bonstrom, left him after having an affair with her twin sister’s ex-husband, Thierry Gillier.

“Charlotte and I are in the process of getting divorced — she wants to get remarried,” he told Page Six at the time. “[She] is getting married to Thierry Gillier, the ex-husband of her sister.”

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The former couple share two kids: Vittorio Jr. and Valentina.

After his split from his wife, Assaf began dating model Nya Gatbel. It’s unclear when they split, but she didn’t appear to be by his side during a week-long hospitalization last year in Italy.

Vittorio Assaf’s relationship with Aoki Lee Simmons

Assaf was seen packing on the PDA with Aoki Lee Simmons in April 2024. Spread Pictures/MEGA The model and the dad of two have a 44-year age gap. aokileesimmons/Instagram

In April 2024, Assaf was photographed kissing Simmons during a romantic getaway to St. Barts — despite their almost 44-year age gap.

The youngest daughter of Kimora Lee Simmons and Russell Simmons and the Serafina co-founder shared a kiss and spent time in the clear blue water together.

At one point, Aoki posed in different angles for Assaf as he took pictures of her with his phone.

The model wore an olive-green bikini with a tribal print on the front, while Assaf went shirtless, only sporting a pair of light-blue-and-white-printed swim trunks.