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He's a diverse actor who crafted his skills later in life. At 30, he dumped his culinary career to pursue another passion — acting. The wager paid off.
Now, 47-year-old Carlo Rota stars in three hit series — 24, Little Mosque on the Prairie and Great Canadian Food Show. That's in addition to countless TV stints in La Femme Nikita, Traders, Queer as Folk and Street Legal, to name a few.
But acting isn't Rota's true love — that's deeply rooted in his childhood.
"I just got this fantastic bike! It's a Moto Guzzi California. It's the bike that I've wanted since I was 10!" he says passionately with a thick English accent.
Actor Carlo Rota shows off his Moto Guzzi California motorcycle, but when his dog Harry comes along he drives an Audi A3. (Sami Siva/The Globe and Mail)
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"It was the first motorcycle that I saw in Italy and went, 'Wow, that's a motorcycle! I need to drive a motorcycle!'
"About two weeks ago, I was having a breakdown because I had to pay a tax instalment, which was sizable. So I thought I need to buy something for myself because I feel like I'm paying everyone else money.
"I ran across this Moto Guzzi California in a Toronto showroom and I made the horrendous error of taking it for a test drive," says Rota, who stars in the television adaptation of Shakespeare's Othello on CBC this Sunday.
"It's the workhorse bike that Moto Guzzi has made for a very long time. When I first saw it, it absolutely got me all lathered up and I was 10!" he exclaims wide-eyed.
"It's an Italian version of a Harley, except it has a V-twin engine. It's just fantastic. It's black. It's got white detail. It has a nice windshield, nice detailed lights, beautiful chrome — I've never had a bike like that. Italian police used to use them."
How's it different from a Harley? First, it's cheaper — about $18,000. "You wouldn't get a Harley for that! Not with this kind of detail. This is all stock — I haven't got any custom stuff."
Second, "it has a different style of engine — this is a V-twin set at 90 degrees. This is the signature Moto Guzzi engine. All their bikes have this style engine in one way, shape or form.
"This one is air-cooled, fuel-injected. It's an 1,100-cc engine with two large pistons. It produces a certain type of torque ride …" He rambles on as my eyes glaze over.
"This is a very smooth ride; it's a cruising-style bike. The acceleration isn't mental the way it is on a lot of street bikes." The pace of his voice quickens, before asking "Are you coming for a ride?"
I accept. It's my first motorcycle ride and I have my reservations. Safety comes first. Rota runs back to his apartment to grab a black leather jacket and helmet.
We go for a spin in his Toronto neighbourhood. I grasp his waist tightly, especially during the turns.
The open-air ride is exhilarating and Rota is a confident, cautious driver. But the needle does hit 40 mph on a side street — enough to make me nervous. I swallow a bug and hold on tighter. Luckily, his layers of clothes and black leather jacket shield him from my fingernails.
(The bike's speedometer is in mph because he plans to take his bike to his other home in Los Angeles. To register it there, it must be in miles.)
In L.A., Rota also has a BMW Enduro 650 Dakar motorcycle. In Toronto, his other two-wheeler is a scooter — a Vespa 200 Gran Turismo.
Rota bought his first bike, a 50-cc Moto Morini, in Italy. Since then, he has owned several bikes — a Yamaha 600 Enduro, a Kawasaki 900, a Yamaha 350 and a Yamaha 500. But hands down, the Moto Guzzi is his favourite.
"It's the bike that inspired me to always have a bike. I've always had a motorcycle in one way, shape or form … It's a fantastic brand. It's a really well-made bike."
When it comes to his car, though, he skips the exotic Italian brands and opts for a more practical car from the Germans.
"Last year in L.A., I was in the beautiful situation where I had to go out and get myself a car — any car I wanted, obviously nothing really high-end.
"It's a daunting choice because you don't know what to get. And in L.A. cars are stigmatized … If you live in West Hollywood and you drive a Mini, you're gay.
"So I wanted a car that didn't have a group attached to it. Believe it or not, that's a very difficult thing to do in L.A."
He settled for a 2008 Audi A3 3.2 S-Line quattro. "The power of this 3.2 engine combined with the all-wheel-drive of this car is amazing. It really hugs the road; you can go around corners like nobody's business."
He also needs the space for his surfboard and his dog, Harry, who joins him on location during tapings of Little Mosque on the Prairie in Etobicoke, Ont.
"I like the styling. It's got a very European style. The sport hatch is not something that really took off in North America. But I think people are becoming more and more used to the shape," says the London-born actor of Italian descent.
"I think when you buy a car, it's great to have the extra capacity. I'm a huge fan of station wagons. I used to have this fantastic Volvo turbo wagon. I loved the shape and performance of it.
"But every time I got out of it, people would say, 'Are you planning to get married? Travelling with kids?' Particularly in Los Angeles, the car dictates your lifestyle."
Rota's most embarrassing car-related moment happened in that Volvo. "My very first day on 24, I got into the Volvo and I was so thrilled to be working in the U.S.
"I set off and my tire just completely shredded on the Hollywood Freeway — it was literally down to the rim! All this smoke and sparks were coming out as I was driving along. So I managed to get it over onto the shoulder of the Hollywood Freeway. You're not supposed to do this, but I changed the tire.
"I got to work and I was late and filthy. I was covered in black. I arrived and met everyone: 'Kiefer, this is Carlo, he's starting today. Mary Lynn, this is Carlo.' I was frazzled; I was mental. They didn't look at me and go why is your face black? They just went, 'Hi, how's it going?'" He laughs in retrospect.
Rota may know how to change a tire, but he's green when it comes to his current car. When asked to pop the hood to snap a picture of the engine, he can't. He resorts to the manual for help.
