Rosa Mendolia

If you save, you will always find.

Credit: Mendolia family

Rosa was the cherished matriarch of Fremantle’s fishing community and Western Australia’s adopted nonna. Her legendary cooking was celebrated across the country, her recipes sought by top chefs and her food fondly remembered by generations of Fremantle fishers.

Born in 1926 in Marchesana, Sicily, Rosa grew up during the turbulent years of fascism. Life was tough, but her strength and resilience shone through early. She married Francolino Mendolia, and in 1952 their daughter Enza was born. Determined to give his young family a better future, Francolino sailed for Fremantle aboard the Castel Felice, seeking opportunities far beyond their coastal village.

Rosa in Sicily, before she set sail for Fremantle.
Credit: Mendolia family

Rosa and Francolino in the early years of their marriage.
Credit: Mendolia family

Francolino, who had fished since boyhood in Sicily, found work in Fremantle’s lobster industry. In the off-season, he fished for sardines, which were plentiful off the coast. After nearly two years of long hours and hard saving, he returned to Sicily to bring Rosa and Enza to Australia. The family later grew with five more children – Jim, Nella, Carmelo, Franca and Aldo.

Rosa and Francolino with their first three children. Their family later grew to six: Enza, Jim, Nella, Carmelo, Franca and Aldo.
Credit: Mendolia family

A full house – Rosa and Francolino with their large family.
Credit: Mendolia family

Rosa shed many tears in her early days in Fremantle, homesick for the loved ones she had left behind. As more Italian families arrived, she found comfort in a strong community and together they built a culture that still thrives today.

In the kitchen, Rosa’s talents flourished. Sardines were a daily staple, although laborious to prepare – hours were spent filleting the tiny fish. She turned them into delicacies marinated Spanish-style, stuffed and fried or simmered in tomato sauce. Lobster was also common on the Mendolia table, and Rosa’s school lunches became legendary: hollowed out loaves filled with fresh lobster salad, dressed simply with olive oil, lemon, salt and pepper.

The family’s ties to the sea continued through their son Jim, who began fishing full time in 1980. He had learned the skill of netting and beach seining as a boy alongside Francolino in South Fremantle. Using a long seine net weighted at the bottom and floated at the top, they would encircle shoals of fish and draw them in. These early lessons laid the foundation for Jim’s lifelong career in the fishing industry, deeply rooted in family tradition and Fremantle’s coastal culture.

The Bella Tindari, central to the Mendolia family story, fished Fremantle’s coastal waters for many years. 
Credit: Mendolia family

When her sons Jim, Carmelo and Aldo joined the family fishing business, Rosa made sure they were always well-fed and cared for. Breakfast was set on the table, ready for when Francolino and the boys came in from the sea. At lunchtime, she would track them down to bring them home for a proper meal. Her hearty meals – chickpeas, pasta, lentils and spaghetti with slow-cooked meat sauce – were made with love and skill. The secret to her sauce was beef bones, which gave it a rich, unforgettable flavour.

Francolino unloads a boat brimming with fish.  
Credit: Mendolia family

Jim and Aldo, sons of Rosa and Francolino, fishing off the coast of Fremantle.
Credit: Mendolia family

The daily sardine catch was prolific, and Rosa quickly saw a business opportunity. For many years, she sold hand-filleted sardines from the family’s backyard on Suffolk Street. Neighbours and friends came from across Perth, often bartering with fresh produce from their own gardens. The success of this backyard enterprise grew into the Fremantle Sardine Company.

Rosa was not only the backbone of the household but also her children’s fiercest champion. She never discounted their sardines. Son Jim fondly remembers her telling customers, ‘My boys work too hard; I can’t take a cent off, not one cent!’

The business grew quickly and in 1988 the family opened a dedicated factory: Mendolia Seafoods. Soon after, Rosa’s son Jim spotted an advertisement for a herring filleting machine. He contacted the Danish supplier and, within two weeks, had ingeniously converted it into a sardine filleting machine – a world first. What once took hours by hand could now be done at 100 fish per minute, transforming sardines from mere bait into a thriving industry.

Rosa suggested the brand names ‘Bella del Tindari’ and ‘Auschovies’ and even designed the  packaging in the colours of the Italian flag. The Mendolia sardines, packed in larger cans than most supermarket varieties, were preserved in Sumich’s extra-virgin olive oil and offered in flavours such as native lemon myrtle, Italian tomato sauce, native pepper berry and spring water – another Australian first.

Rosa suggested the names ‘Bella del Tindari’ and ‘Auschovies’ for the family’s first sardine and anchovy brands.
Credit: Mendolia family

In 1991, Jim launched the Fremantle Sardine Festival with Rosa’s help. Inspired by Portuguese traditions of sardines grilled on the wharves and served with bread and wine, Jim recreated the experience in Fremantle. Sardines were cooked over coals and basted with Rosa’s irresistible blend of olive oil, garlic, oregano and parsley.

The festival drew over 15,000 people and quickly became a sensation. Sardines appeared on menus in Australia’s trendiest restaurants, and by 1994, attendance had swelled to 70,000 – making it the largest one-day event in Western Australia. Running for 11 years, the festival remained one of WA’s most beloved seafood events.

Grilling sardines at the Fremantle Sardine Festival, prepared with Rosa’s signature blend of olive oil, garlic, oregano and parsley.
Credit: Mendolia family

Rosa with son Jim and husband Francolino in 1993, proudly presenting a plate of her sardines. 
Credit: Mendolia family

In 2000, after two outbreaks of disease devastated WA’s sardine harvest, Mendolia Seafoods was forced to pause production. By 2018, the company was back, opening a purpose-built factory in O’Connor and expanding into Australian wild-caught salmon and tuna – winning new markets locally and overseas. It was a powerful testament to Rosa and her family’s resilience.

Rosa’s recipes kept making waves. Her fried sardines with herb mayonnaise featured in The Great Australian Cookbook alongside dishes from culinary icons Stephanie Alexander, Kylie Kwong, Adriano Zumbo, Neil Perry, Matt Moran, Matt Wilkinson, Maggie Beer and others. Her food also appeared on SBS Food Safari with Maeve O’Meara and on the menus of leading  Australian restaurants.

Rosa’s son Jim with Australian chefs, promoting sardines on restaurant menus.
Credit: Mendolia Family

In 2019, Rosa and Francolino’s son Jim received the Michael Kailis Leadership Award at the WA Seafood Awards and was inducted into the National Seafood Hall of Fame – a fitting tribute to his lifelong dedication. Known as the ‘Sardine Man’, Jim can still be found most mornings on board his boat, the Mar Tirreno. His brothers Carmelo and Aldo also continue to fish off Fremantle, carrying the Mendolia legacy forward.

Since 1980, Jim has kept the same routine: leaving in the dark hours before dawn to find schools of sardines, then returning at sunrise, seagulls swooping in for their share of the catch.

Jim on board at Fremantle Fishing Boat Harbour, continuing his lifelong tradition of sardine fishing. 
Credit: Mendolia Family

Rosa was an exceptional woman who inspired all who knew her. Fiercely protective and lovingly devoted, she gave her children a deep sense of place, pride and belonging. With her husband Francolino, she left a legacy that transformed how Australians viewed the humble sardine.

Remembered as ‘everyone’s nonna’, Rosa became an iconic figure in Western Australia’s fishing community. Her vision and innovation shaped an industry, and her legacy continues through her family and the generations she touched.

Jim beams beside mother Rosa at Fremantle Fishing boat Harbour.
Credit: Mendolia Family