Call it a temporary return to his youth.

For the first time in more than 20 years, Rick Caruso is sporting a moustache.

The 54-year-old billionaire shopping center magnate has latched on to the growing Movember movement, where men grow moustaches for a month to raise awareness of men’s diseases such as prostate cancer. Movember, a combination of the words “moustache” and “November,” was inspired by October’s breast cancer awareness movement.

Caruso told the Business Journal that his son Gregory brought up the idea with him a few weeks ago.

“I thought it would be a great idea; our company can always do more on both men’s and women’s health issues,” he said.

Trouble was: He has long had a policy for his development company, Caruso Affiliated, that men must be clean shaven.

“I decided to bend that rule for this occasion,” he said.

He then issued a challenge: For every employee who signs up to grow a moustache, the company would donate $100 to the Movember organization. So far, roughly 100 men have signed up.

What’s more, several stores at Caruso’s Grove and Americana shopping centers are offering promotions. Sprinkles, for example, is offering free cupcakes to all those participating in Movember.

Caruso first grew a moustache after graduating from high school and kept it for 17 years. Then, one day, while on vacation with his wife and young children, he shaved it off.

“When I came out of the bathroom, my wife and kids started screaming,” he said.

Eventually, his family grew used to his new clean-shaven appearance – so much so that they have been teasing him this month as he has grown it back.

“I know my wife will be thrilled when it comes off,” he said.

At least until next Movember.

Stretching Noodle

Chef Bryant Wigger is known for presenting Italian with a Midwest sensibility at Trattoria Neapolis in Pasadena. But expect him to add a Taiwanese flavor to his specialties soon.

Wigger has been selected by the Taiwan Tourism Bureau as one of three chefs to represent North America during an eight-day culinary tour of the country next month. He will visit restaurants, street food vendors, night markets and cooking schools, and come up with some dishes mixing his specialties with Taiwanese flavors at the end of the trip.

He said this is one of the best things about being a chef – traveling and learning about different cultures and flavors.

Wigger grew up on a farm in northwest Missouri, where the closest town with a grocery was 25 miles away.

“McDonald’s to us was a delicacy,” he said.

He developed a passion for cooking and came to California when he was 18 to pursue a career in the kitchen. After working at various top-ranked hotels, he became chief chef at Trattoria Neapolis.

Italian pasta and Asian noodles are similar in how they are cooked, he said.

“For me, it will be thinking of those ingredients that are from Taiwan and put them into an Italian spin,” he said.

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