Karl Giarchi is the current owner of Dino’s Radio Cafe. His grandfather (Gino?) came to Scotland from La Spezia, Tuscany in the 1920’s, arriving first at Port Glasgow to work in a friend’s ice cream shop (The Cafe Royal).
His plan had been to make enough money to pay for the boat passage to NewYork. Instead he saved his money, and with wife, opened his first shop in Dunoon.
His son, (Ronald?) took over the business after Gino’s death in 1962. He grew the business which at one stage comprised five shops, supplying in the town’s heyday all the local hotels with ice cream
In 1962 Ronald, wishing to expand geographically, acquired his first shop in Helensburgh. The original owner of Dino’s Radio Cafe, Dino Baldi, had gone back to Italy because of poor health. The manager of the shop at that time was Tony Malatesta. (After a few years he left and set up the Palace Fish and Chip Shop along the front in Helensburgh).
Karl started work in the shop age 14 and took over the reins in 1985. Maintaining the family entrepreneurial tradition he opened adjacent premises in the former Haddows store.
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