QUALITALY

FEB. MAR. 2018

VII

SUGGESTED FOR ...

The All You Can Eat formula is a valid

alternative to dinner, rather than a

simple buffet. More dynamic than

many meals, it is ideal for birthday

parties or graduations or events in

general. The top for a predominantly

very young, carefree and positive

clientele.

INNOVATIVE FORMULAS

All You Can Eat ice cream has been

spotted at the Tasta - Sicilia al Naturale

ice cream parlour in Corso Garibaldi

in Milan. At La Corte della Risaia

there is Bollìti’s All You Can Eat every

Thursday at 15 euros including water

and cover charge). The same amount

at Nerviano for the evening of the

unlimited Pizzoccheri and for Sasicc

and friariell by Nanni Arbellini of

Milan, pizza maker. Endless ribs for 10

euros every Sunday at Roadhouse. In

Valchiavenna, at the restaurant Crotto

Quartino, for 20 euros per person you

can eat as much as you want of salami,

white Valchiavenna pizzoccheri, ribs,

sausages and polenta taragna. Finally,

the last frontier is the all you can

drink, pay a fixed price, drink until

you can’t anymore, which springs

from an idea of a group of twenty-

somethings in the Just Wine format: 15

euros for food and drink.

ABROAD

In Los Angeles, an unlimited offer

of fast food and drink is paired with

baseball game tickets. IHOP pancakes

are less than 4 dollars. A barrage

of ribs from Apple bees cost 12.99.

In England they go wild for tons of

roasted potatoes: The Roasturant,

created my McCain, can be found at

the Old Truman Brewery, a historic

brewery in London.

AT PAGE 22

COVER STORY

Gourmet QB... just

enough for a classy

kitchen

Knowing how to balance the long

Italian culinary tradition with a pinch

of inspiration and creativity. So if the

chef is called Simone Conti and the

restaurant is an artistic marvel from

the past, the menu can only surprise

and leave one delighted

By Maddalena Baldini

When you sit at a table at the Osteria

Belvedere in Bassano in Teverina

(VT), you have the impression of

taking a journey through time, in

an age of mystery and fascination

in which everything can be a great

discovery. Thanks to the setting

in which the Osteria is located; an

ancient cellar in a noble palace from

the end of the 1600s, composed of

several rooms adjoining each other,

with a total of about 35 places.

To the unique atmosphere of the

interior, where wonderful terraces

have been added, is added the taste

of the original cuisine of the chef and

manager Simone Conti: a patchwork

of traditional flavours dressed in

creativity and with a gourmet touch...

a perfect combination to amaze

customers in every way.

“Working in the kitchen and giving

life to new dishes has always been my

passion,” says chef Conti. “Since I was

a child I was enchanted watching my

maternal grandfather cooking, I think

it started from there. Growing up I

wanted to develop this interest and I

joined the Hotel School of Viterbo...

and here I am among the stoves of

the Osteria Belvedere.

How do you work within the

ancient walls of a palace that once

belonged to an aristocratic family

of the place?

Well, every day is always a wonderful

feeling, a suggestive environment,

almost frozen in time. The restaurant

began in the 1980s, then in 2008

then I came in and I took over the

management of the premises. There

followed intense years of demanding

work, in which I focused on an

inviting cuisine which I never took

for granted, and without losing sight

of traditional flavours. I must say that

these 10 years have brought me great

satisfaction that I share with all the

staff, primarily those in the kitchen

for which I still have the precious

support of my mother.

After all this commitment, in a

nutshell how would you describe

your way of cooking?

It is basically related to the simplicity

of the product without altering

the value of the ingredient and the

components that make up each

dish. Then I add a gourmet touch to

modernise it a little. I stay in touch

with tradition but, in the same way, I

understand that the evolution of the

restaurant requires something more,

a bit of inspiration from the hand of

the chef.

Is your menu typical of the

territory and the region?

As mentioned I really like to follow

the tradition and culture of Italian

cuisine but I allow scope, i.e. I do

not only prepare dishes from Lazio

or Viterbo, I enjoy embracing also

the traditions of other regions and

places... there is such a wealth that

it would be a sin not to experience

and not try the delicacies that are the

heritage of our Italy: I like to make

dishes with the Sicilian pistachio

from Bronte like those with pasture

cheeses, passing in a moment from

the sea to the mountain.

With such a varied and wide

interest, how do you manage the

supplies of the ingredients?

I always look for top quality products,

able to exalt my menus but able also

to allow discovery of their original

and unique flavour. When I can I

choose locally sourced produce,