Raw materials, techniques, ingredients, values that are handed down over time. And they allow contemporary cuisine to make us dream
The sunsets of a nostalgic autumn color the journey, while inside me the expectation of a rich experience of taste, of flavors, of greedy dishes grows strong.
What drives us to go in search of tables and perfumes, raw materials and valuable ingredients, an expression of genius, passion and love for the territory? Life is a matter of senses, it is a concrete fulfillment of desires, through eyes, hands, sounds and… tastes.
And it is also through these sensations that the research continues, is enriched, moves towards new encounters, new taste experiences. And it is with that curiosity that you continue to seek, to find, to enjoy.
“This place deserves the detour”, and you feel this imperative, you stop, turn, go back. And it is not always the navigator who shows you the right way, but it is instinct, the outline of the mountains, the rows of vines perched or gently stretched out, the color of the sky, the faces of the people, the signs of the shops and shops.
Or the sea on the horizon. So you let yourself be seduced by the stars and finally enter that experience. The restaurant can become a temple and its priest, the chef, along with his brigade, serves the worship of a new religion at the table.
Because today food is redeeming itself from the sin in which the history of humanity has imprisoned it and is becoming a serious matter, more and more serious, almost academic.
Maybe too much? We’ll see. In the meantime, famous chefs, great winemakers, famous sommeliers tell us that it would be appropriate to take a step back in time, a return is necessary, whether it is to simplicity or to Mother Earth, as long as it is back.
So, let’s pay more attention to true traditions, history and experience that generations of professionals have lived before us, struggling and creating to give us a “code” that we often forget … Which then, on closer inspection, every return makes part of the journey and on this journey I met the courage of those who knew and who knows how to dare but also to return, with humility and passion, to those who created before us … in this sense, I find certain dishes by Paolo Lopriore iconic, chef patron of the Portici di Appiano Gentile: faithful disciple of Gualtiero Marchesi, who makes absolute taste his mission.
His Fried rabbit and courgette flowers is a praise of simplicity, in a delightful version. Just as Tiziana Ravecca’s stuffed squid (with her mother and sister Arianna she runs an excellent restaurant near Bergamo) represents a true apology for taste.
Simple and luxurious. Paolo and Arianna are not starred, but their cuisine has the same rigor and the same love for perfection that many two-star chefs (like the ones we have on the cover of this issue) express in their cooking lines.
Like Chef Andrea Aprea, two Michelin stars, who, with his legendary dish, sweet and salty Caprese, always reminds us that the best traditions must be honored and respected.
And that it is thanks to them that one can launch into haute cuisine with flair and talent, but with the cards of professionalism in order.
Not so much to amaze, but to give guests and incurable gourmets like myself, true and total enjoyment.
